All Over Again
by Mitski-tan
Summary: In a world full of magical boxes, parallel worlds, rainbow colored flames and talking babies- Tsuna thought that things couldn't get any weirder. He was sadly proven wrong when he dies and well...doesn't actually die. AU. In addition, Reborn is actually in his adult form? Hiiee! Being 'tutored' has never been more painful! Also where inactive characters get more time to shine.
1. Prologue

**Disclaimer: **I do not own KHR! It belongs to Amano.

Ahh, so this is my first story and it's only the prologue. If I made any mistakes, please tell me! I'm rather nervous. The actual chapters will be a lot longer I think. And um, this is an AU, but its mostly cannon? To a certain degree at least. This is a Humor, Friendship and Family fic, with fluff. Lots of fluff. So, to make a long story short; this fan fiction will have some of the more inactive people in the series appear more. Like, Kyoko and Haru and etc. I feel that they should have been more helpful; but that's purely my opinion.

**Summary:** In a world full of magical boxes, parallel worlds, rainbow colored flames and talking babies- Tsuna thought that things couldn't get any weirder. He was sadly proven wrong when he dies and well...doesn't actually die.

Edited: 8/15/15

* * *

**Prologue**

Sawada Tsunayoshi took a deep shuddering breath as blood continued to spill from the wound at his side. The coppery metallic smell made him cringe and practically bathing in it didn't help either. His entire body was weak with fatigue from the fight. He was so tired and no matter how much he urged his body, he could not move. He couldn't protect _them_.

Haru. Kyoko.

_Plip. Plip._

His eyes darted toward the two girls by his side, crying.

He found he didn't like it as tears continued to splatter onto his cheeks. Everything seemed to be so hazy...why were they crying again? He really wished he could move, if only to wipe the tears away from their eyes.

Kyoko had pulled out her cellphone, desperately pleading for help, hiccuping while Haru tried to stop the bleeding. He could feel her hands trembling as she pressed a thin cloth against the injury.

Ahh...he really didn't want them to see it. This cruel part of the Mafia, the blood and killing. They were so innocent and happy...safe too. Or _was_ safe. When he had heard about them being kidnapped, pure dread filled his very being- rage next. He had rushed out so quickly without his Guardians. What else was he supposed to do? _Wait?_ Wait while the two could possibly be tortured at the very moment? He was reckless and rash, careless and idiotic. Of course they would be pulled in sooner or later, he was actually surprised it lasted so long.

He eyed the injuries they had with blurred eyes, Haru had a few bruises, cuts and a split lip while Kyoko wore a cut on her cheek and a few others around her arms from the broken glass. His heart still burned in anger at their treatment. They had never wronged anyone before, they were innocent from the darkness of the Mafia. _So whywhywhy did they have to go through this? _

Ah...he felt so tired now, completely drained.

The twenty-six year old man had so many regrets. He should have told them the truth. He should have protected them better, should have prepared them for the brutality of Mafia. It wasn't all fun and games as he would've liked. The brunet could hear a familiar voice screaming his name as a figure ran toward him.

Hayato.

Tsuna felt relief course through his veins as he spotted the approaching figure. The girls would be safe, they would be okay. But something told him that it would not. He was going to die. Hayato was going to watch him die. The man would probably blame himself and it would all be his fault. His Storm Guardian had always been rather protective of him, but no, this was not his fault. It was Tsuna's own carelessness and mistake. Fear pooled into his gut. Not of dying, no- he was never scared of dying after joining the Mafia, he was scared for his friends, for his mother. For his guardians. For his _family._ Tsuna would be leaving them alone and his heart ached.

He wanted to redo this. This wasn't what he wanted. Then again; joining the Mafia wasn't something he had wanted. But it had brought him so many friends and bonds that he would never ever give up. His head throbbed and all the sounds seemed to slowly fade. Reborn had always said to do everything with his dying will, and he would if he had another chance. The orange flame on his forehead seemed to burst into even more flames with a never seen intensity from his resolution before they flickered out and died.

He drew in one more breath before everything turned black.

And that was how Neo Vongola Primo died.

* * *

A little boy blinked as he felt something sting in his heart. With furrowed brows, he touched his throbbing chest with chubby hands. It felt like something had changed, his heart felt oddly heavy. Shrugging it off, the little boy continued to stack the wooden blocks on top of each other, making a staggering albeit short tower.

"Tsu-kun!" the call catches his attention and he perks up.

Giggling, the brunet managed to stand up on wobbly legs, running to his beloved mother.

All was well in the four year old's eyes.

* * *

_When one dies with regrets, they will simply die. But when Tsuna dies with regrets, he reborns with his dying will and beats the hell out of said regret. Nothing less from the boy who was shot and died multiple times after all. _


	2. Died but not yet Dead

**Disclaimer: **Reborn does not belong to me~ Cover Picture doesn't either.

**Author's note: **Oh gosh. Sorry for the delay and the shortness! Writing is a lot harder then I thought. I'm also pretty busy right now, but I hope you guys like this! I just wanted to post it now, and as always-please tell me if I have any mistakes! I haven't checked the latest additions so sorry if I have mistakes! Q A Q

And thank you for the favourites, reviews and follows! I didn't expect many and it was quite a pleasant surprise. I appreciate it a lot! And um-I live on reviews! And food.

* * *

**Chapter**** 1**

It was warm, and almost familiar. He had the odd feeling that he been here before, but he couldn't remember when- and his throbbing head did not help at all. It was dark and there seemed to be absolutely nothing in this space. Where was he?

As he floated listlessly about, the brunet wondered where did he encounter such a place before.

The truth hit him suddenly like a bag full of bricks.

He _had_ been here before, whenever Reborn had shot him with the dying will bullets- he would be here for a few moments before flashing back to life.

He was dead.

* * *

And as sudden as everything went black, it flashed white- practically blinding the poor brunet as he tumbled onto the white space. Tsuna groaned, wondering what exactly happened as he covered his eyes, trying to adjust to the sudden change. He had been dying, or rather- he was supposed to be dead.

Flashes of what happened filled his head, the smell of blood, the wet tears of Kyoko and Haru- their crying faces and his unmoving body. He tentatively touched his face, only to find it dry.

Tsuna glanced around, there was only white, blank space, complete nothingness. There was no Haru, no Kyoko, and no Hayato. So he was dead...he had left them after all. In a combination of a wince and a squint, he managed to see an upside down blurry figure of someone rather familiar. And as soon as the bitter feeling rose, it was washed away with shock.

Eyes widening, the brunet quickly rolled over and sat up as fast as he could. He faintly noticed that his bloody wound was no longer there- as if it had vanished. His suit was in perfect condition actually.

"Decimo." The other man greeted, a smile upon his face. "Or is it Neo Primo now?"

The brunet gulped, staring into flaming orange eyes. "Vongola Primo…"

Giotto smiled, happy to see his descendant after so long though he knew he really shouldn't. Especially with the reason for his visit. The sky flames danced on his forehead, blazing with it's usual bright resolution.

While Giotto was busy burning the young man's image in him, Tsuna was in a turmoil, confusion and questions bursting into his head. Was this Heaven or Hell? If this was Heaven, then it was super boring. And if it was Hell..then it was highly overrated. He eyed the space warily, nope- no bursting column of flames. His attention was back to Giotto though, as the blond gave a little cough.

"Am I dead?" he blurted out, and he himself was surprised by his lack of tact. He frowned, perhaps Hibari was rubbing off of him with his blunt sentences. Or it was the fact that his spartan tutor just loved to shoot him when he stuttered and was beating around the bush. Probably the latter.

The blond seemed to grimace before looking away sheepishly. "About that Decimo.."

The first thought that the brunet had was that he was screwed. Warning bells just seemed to ring in his head. Not only was a dead person talking to him again (okay, this would make sense if he _was_ dead) the dead person who he respected and admired was grimacing and looking guilty. It was quite a sight to see actually.

"Something happened."

...That definitely meant bad news. Nothing was ever good when those words came up, it was just as bad as 'We need to talk' and 'I'll bite you to death'. There seemed to be a long moment of silence as Giotto continued to wring his hands guiltily. "Your resolution...was very strong." he started hesitantly.

Tsuna blinked, brows scrunching. His resolution? His mind was quite hazy at the moment, probably because of that blinding white light. He thought back to the point when he was dying, Kyoko and Haru were crying and he had seen Hayato running...His hands tightened into fists at the memory. The forgotten raging feelings seemed to be gathering in his chest again. He had died, promising he would fix everything and work harder if he had another chance. And he knew he would put his dying will into it if he did.

"You're being put into into another world." Primo blurted hastily. Brown eyes stared at him in shock, mouth opening and closing again. Giotto faintly thought that Tsuna currently resembled a fish.

"I….what?" he questioned, mouth suddenly dry.

"You'll be in a parallel world. Though this one is rather behind." he explained. "The you in this world right now is almost 5."

Tsuna was still frozen.

"You're going to merge with him." he continued quickly.

Wait. What? He opened his mouth to say something. Anything. To complain, to whine and to question why couldn't he just die like a _normal_ person for once. Even his death was weird. Who _dies_ but don't actually die? But all that comes out is a simple. "_Oh he-."_

The last thing he saw was an apologetic looking Giotto before everything blacked out.

Again.

* * *

As Tsunayoshi disappeared, another form flickered into the space.

"How was it?" a familiar voice asked, approaching the standing blond.

Giotto sighed, wringing his hands. "Very stressful." he answered, not even looking back. He knew who was there, and how could he not? He was one of best friends after all, one he considered family.

"...You didn't tell him did you?"

Giotto inwardly winced, he had hit the head on the nail as always. Turning around, he smiled sheepishly. "Sorry G."

G rolled his eyes at Primo's antics. "You should have."

Giotto let out a somewhat pathetic whimper. "But G! How could I tell him that I was the one who placed him into the parallel world? He would hate me!"

The Storm guardian snorted, "You should have thought more about it before actually doing it."

"But..he seemed so resolved and I just couldn't help it." he admitted guiltily. "And how would _I_ know that this world was crazier the the last?! Would you have told Decimo about it?"

"..."

"..Fair point."

"Exactly." The blond stated, smug.

"Still your fault."

"..."

The blond simply gave him a petulant pout, signifying his defeat and the end of the conversation.

The figures flickered before fading slowly, and as Giotto began to disappear, he glanced at where Tsuna was before. Eyes filled with regret and empathy, his last thoughts drifted away.

_'Good Luck Decimo...I hope you will not let the sadness overcome you. If it's anyone who deserves a second chance, it's you.'_

* * *

Tsuna found himself upside down, staring at a white wall and a bunch of scattered toys on the floor. His thoughts drifted back to his meeting with Primo, his death and his guardians. So he was dead in his original world...he wryly wondered how they were.

_Were they okay? Was Lambo crying? Were his guardians blaming themselves? Was Hayato okay? How was Takeshi? Did Hibari think he was too weak? Was Mukuro laughing? Of course not. Tsuna did know that deep down, the Mist Guardian actually cared. Was Chrome shocked? Did Onii-san get the news from Kyoko? Had his mom heard about it?_ The brunet flinched as his head throbbed, clearing away his depressing thoughts. His head was spinning from the flashes of colours and he thought he could feel the blood rushing to his head as well. Tsuna couldn't help but think gravity _hated_ him as he struggled to get up, trying to pry the tangled sheets away from his legs.

He froze as he stared at his hands.

His.._chubby_ hands. Right...he was almost five now. The brunet scowled, though it looked more like a pout with his chubby cheeks as he yanked the sheets loose. Pulling himself up, he proceeded to observe his room. It was...really familiar. There was a bunch of toy blocks on the floor near the corner and a flash of nostalgia hit him. It seemed like only a few days ago he was stacking them up to make a staggering tower.

Tsuna frowned, was it a few days ago? He couldn't tell.

His eyes drifted to the small table and chair, papers and crayons were strewn across it's plastic surface. He moved closer in curiosity to see what the younger boy (younger self) had drawn. On one sheet there was a bright pink monstrosity that resembled a bunch of stones and on another sheet was a brown muddy looking circle that looked nothing like a circle with its somewhat jagged looking edges. The picture was finished with yellow scribbles surrounding it.

A pig and a sunflower, his brain helpfully supplied.

He squinted at the picture, nose wrinkling. _Okay._ Clearly his younger self had the art skills equivalent of a hippo's. Huffing, he stumbled through the door-there was nothing else to see in the room anyway.

Tsuna headed to the bathroom, freezing when he heard the sounds of plates clinking downstairs. Eyes widening, he ditched the bathroom in favour of waddling down the stairs.

He then blamed his momentary act of clumsiness on the fact that his legs were incredibly short and that he was not used to it. Needless to say, he tripped and rolled down with a yelp. Right. He had forgotten about the fact that he was clumsy. Loud foot steps rushed over and warm hands scooped him up, the brunet blinks- peering into a familiar face.

_Mum._

He felt breathless as his sight began to blur from his tears. It had been a long time since he had seen Sawada Nana. Ever since Tsuna became the Vongola Neo Primo- the brunet had to leave her alone most of time. He would visit her, but they were all rather short visits. He had felt so frustrated then, he had been just like his father, leaving his mother alone to 'protect' her. But this time would be different.

"Araa-Tsu-kun, did that hurt?" her familiar voice soothed him.

He shook his head, sniffling. He scrubbed the tears away with his sleeves. "No mum." He inwardly winced at his voice. Was his voice always that high? He sounded like a girl!

She giggles before placing him onto the chair. "Breakfast is ready now."

Tsuna blinked, staring at the delicious looking food. He had missed it terribly, his mother's food was always the best- unbeatable really. But what he loved the most was the love and affection in her food. It was always just so warm and full of her feelings. Tasting the food, he couldn't help but tear up; he really, really missed her.

Nana gave him a worried look, wiping away his tears. "Tsu-kun, don't cry."

He beamed at her.

Perhaps living again wasn't so bad after all.

* * *

The brunet never really paid attention to his looks, he only knew that he was in no way cool or good looking. But who knew he looked so...cute? Tsuna glanced at his reflection in the mirror, his attention caught by his chubby cheeks and large, brown eyes. He scowled, how did he never notice? He tugged at his spiky fluffy hair, he was still not used to his reflection, especially since he looked extremely different. Instead of the smooth, slightly sharp edges of his face, it was purely round. His eyes were more orange and slanted in the future.

He knew one thing for sure though.

He couldn't wait till puberty kicked in.

* * *

Tsuna was five when Sawada Iemitsu came back with a mafia boss in tow. The brunet was definitely not pleased. The man had came in boisterously, slamming the door open and startling Tsuna who had happened to be stacking word blocks to make random Italian words. The tower had fell apart, leaving the blocks to tumble onto the floor.

And before he could even scowl, large beefy hands scooped him up and Tsuna let out a surprised yelp. Iemitsu grinned at him, lifting him high as Tsuna struggled to keep a firm grip on the man's arms. He did not want to plummet to the unforgiving ground thank you very much. Plus, the height scared him. Which was pretty ironic since he could actually fly and was supposed to represent the sky. (Reborn would definitely shoot him for that.) The blond lifted the child down a few inches, so they could meet face to face. Needless to say, Tsuna clinged onto his father's shoulders.

"How's my little tuna-fish?" The man cooed, leaving Tsuna to grimace at the nickname.

"I'm fine." He answered politely.

"That's great! Now where's Nana?" He asked and the shuffling of feet could be heard as Sawada Nana came out of the kitchen, eyes bright. "Dear!" She exclaimed in delight.

"Welcome home!"

Tsuna couldn't help but feel a bit happy at his mother's bright smile. She loved his father very dearly and he could tell that she did miss the man very much. The brunet reminded himself to get the blond to come more often.

Still in his father's arms, the 5 year old peered behind his father's shoulders to see a familiar old man.

Vongola Nono.

The old man gave the little boy a warm smile and waved. Tsuna waved hesitantly back. He faintly remembered that Nono had sealed away his flames in this visit. He frowned at the thought, he had not tried to bring them out yet, but he would rather not have them sealed.

After Iemitsu stopped flirting and making eyes at his wife, he introduced the old man as Timoteo- his boss as a construction worker. The brunet snorted at the ridiculous excuse. What made him believe his father again? He really should've been suspicious way early on. Then again...he never was really bright.

All throughout the visit, Tsuna made sure not to summon his flames, accident or not. He also tried to stay away from Timoteo and avoid being in the same room alone due to the infamous Vongola-intuition. Unfortunately, he failed when Iemitsu and Nana went out for some 'alone' time, leaving the little boy and old man alone.

Trying not to twitch nervously, Tsuna bounced his purple ball outside.

"Tsunayoshi-kun."

The brunet stopped the bouncing and held the ball, glancing at Nono curiously.

"Do you love your family?"

Tsuna blinked. He didn't even need to think to answer such a question. "Of course!"

The old man smiled warmly at him, eyes crinkling. "Will you always protect them?"

The boy nodded, not knowing any other answer. He would _always_ protect them, no matter what. Family was most important after all. His friends and guardians all belonged in that family.

"I hope you will always feel that way."

That was the only conversation he had with the old man alone.

Soon enough, the two left with an over dramatic teary farewell from Iemitsu and a promise to visit again soon.

The brunet knew they would not come back any time soon.

* * *

Now six, Tsuna realized with dread that he had to...got to school. School had never been a good experience for him because of the bullying and his horrible grades. The nick name didn't help either. When the brunet had ascended to become the Neo Vongola Primo, no one called him 'Dame-Tsuna'. Even Reborn had ceased...most of the time. But even when his tutor did call him that, it held no mocking or hostility, just a light teasing tone, almost like an inside joke. Now thinking about it, Tsuna really missed Reborn, he would know what to do in this situation- as well as his guardians. (Though he definitely did not miss his paperwork or Reborn's spartan tutoring.) But school was approaching very soon, and hopefully he could make a good impression this time, but something in his gut told him he would not. Darn the Vongola-intuition! He couldn't even _believe_ it would all go well.

And so. Tsuna started school.

The morning that school started was absolutely chaotic, clothes were thrown everywhere as Nana fussed over him, making sure he wore his clothes right. She also started combing his fluffy hair. Tsuna had to stuff his breakfast into his mouth, choking at least five times before he finally finished. He was then rushed out with his mother, making a dash to school. He was huffing when he arrived, and the brunet noted that he had to exercise more.

5 minutes later, he was ushered into the classroom and forced to sit in an already formed circle made of other kids. They eyed him curiously and Tsuna looked at them warily, as if they would just jump him. He spots a smiling Kyoko and a scowling Hana, feeling his heart beat faster. She was okay.

_'But she won't be.' _A snide voice tells him and he inwardly flinches. _'You will drag her into a bloody world that will bring harm to her and her beloved brother.' _

"Sawada-san."

Guilt gnaws at him and Tsuna couldn't help but think that it would be a lot better if she was not involved.

"_Sawada-san_!" The brunet blinks, his teacher's voice snapping him out of it.

"H-hai?"

"Sawada-san, it is your turn to introduce yourself." she scolds him.

The brunet flushes, _why did he act like a fool again?_ He thought he had gotten over his bumbling. "H-hello! I am Sawada Tsunayoshi, but please call me Tsuna."

The teacher raises a brow. "Is that it Sawada-san?"

"I! I..um..like lions?" he squeaks, wondering if Natsu counted as a lion. He inwardly mused that he didn't even have to try like his past self, it was all coming in so naturally. Reborn would definitely had killed him for reverting back to his dame self.

"Alright." his teacher concedes. "Next." The brunet let out a sigh of relief, introductions were never easy. Something was prickling him inside though...almost like a ticklish feeling. His budding hyper intuition? Something seemed off, in a good way.

"Haha, hello! I'm Yamamoto Takeshi and I love baseball!"

The brunet blinks before looking next to him in surprise, and there he was in all his sparkling and smiling glory- Yamamoto Takeshi. He let out a startled yelp before muffling it with with his hand. The baseball lover glanced at him curiously, but didn't say anything. _His Rain Guardian...WAS IN HIS CLASS? _He tried to remember if he was in his class in the other world, but he just couldn't remember. It was years ago after all. His heart stung at seeing the raven haired male's familiar smile. But it wasn't the same, this was not _his_ Takeshi, not the one who picked up the sword to protect him, not the one in his family. His head throbbed again, clearing away his bitter thoughts. He thank whatever God that gave him these headaches, anything to stop from thinking about his guardians. (Though it would be better without the ache..)

Soon, the rest of the class introduced themselves, and they spent the rest of the afternoon playing games and singing songs.

Oh the horror of loud out of tune singing.

His ears would never be the same.

* * *

Over the next few days, the brunet came to a rather startling conclusion.

Kyoko was alone.

The ginger usually just spent her time alone, doodling and when outside-drawing flowers and pictures on the dirt. As a little girl, Kyoko was just adorable, but she was not popular, Yamamoto seemed to be the must popular due to his athleticism and love for sports. She was just plain Kyoko and held no big redeeming features beside her adorable smile. But kids weren't interested in that yet, only fun and games. She seemed perfectly content alone so teachers also left her alone.

Kurokawa Hana was also alone.

He eyed the dark brunette across the room, sitting on the rug with her arms crossed. But she was different, a lone wolf really. She would keep a scowl on her face to keep away others and Tsuna couldn't remember if she had smiled at all throughout the week. She seemed miserable and grouchy, but did not appreciate others approaching her at all.

Right. She hated kids.

He looked at the two contrasting figures warily. _How did they even become friends? _

Tsuna bit his lip worryingly, was Kyoko really okay alone? She always seemed like a people person..He could always approach her, but would she accept him like the other Kyoko? Besides..Kyoko's best friend was Hana.

If they weren't friends yet..then...

* * *

Kurokawa Hana was not a happy camper, far from it since she was _not_ happy and absolutely detested camping. She eyed a young red head stuffing his face with food with unveiled disgust. Chocolate was smeared on his cheeks messily and he wiped his chocolate covered hands onto his shirt, making dark marks. She cringed at the pigsty.

Monkeys.

That's what they all were, from the little boy chewing on his fingers while dribbling saliva all around (didn't he knew that someone could get sick from his germs?) to the two kids throwing mud at each other outside (what's so fun about having mud all over your clothing and skin? Ew). She sniffed, upset. Why did she have to suffer like this and hang around these uncivilized beings? It wasn't fair, if she wanted to go to the zoo, she would actually _go_ to the zoo. Because of her parents, she had a higher intellect and was much more mature then any other 6 year olds. It was like a human being forced to hang around monkeys.

Huffing irritably, she resumed her attention back onto her large red book. The six year old had found it in one of the dusty shelves, it seemed rather interesting with it's intriguing plot about rainbow coloured flames and heroes.

Yes, it was a bit childish, but she was still a child after all. She would never ever admit it though that she did want a passionate friendship and strong bonds. Just not...now. Not with these people. They were too young, too shallow. She wanted something strong and connected, something deep and immeasurable.

She noted with her peripheral vision that someone was approaching her. She scowled, did it look like she wanted to be with someone else? Wasn't having her face in a book a good enough hint?

A pair of legs stopped in front of her.

Apparently not.

The dark brunette did her best to ignore the child in front to her, trying to concentrate on the small words on the faded pages. After 2 minutes of not being able to understand the printed words due to lack of concentration, she finally shut her book, sending a sharp glare at the intruder. She did do a double take in surprise to see a fluffy brunette with wide brown eyes. _He was the one who was late on the first day...what was name again? Something tuna?_

The brunet gulped, eyeing her nervously and wringing his hands before giving her a shy smile.

Cue beam of light and sparkles.

Hana's eyes would never be the same again.

Nor would her life.

* * *

Tsuna tried really hard not to fall flat on his face or anything like that in front of the dark brunette. He didn't need her commentary about him being a monkey, and honestly..she kind of scared him with her sharp tongue and glare. Yes. Even if she was only 6 years old. Or was that his 6 year old self talking? He shook the thought away, intent on completing his task.

"Ano...Kurokawa-san, would you like to play with me?"

She rose a brow before snorting. "No, now go away."

"Ehh-but Tsu-kun wants-" Tsuna froze, slapping a hand over his traitorous mouth.

WHAT. WAS. _THAT?_

Did he really just refer himself as 'Tsu-kun'?! He really hoped that it was just his 6 year old self talking and not his brain turning into mush from hanging around with too many 6 year olds. He cringed. _I need to find some mature company that don't actually treat me like a 3 year old. _

"Erm, I mean...please?"

Hana frowned before gesturing to the classroom. "Why me? There are clearly more...suitable people for you to bother." _Translation: Go away pest and play with those snot-nosed brats. _

It was funny how even without his Vongola intuition, he was able to translate her words so easily. Then again, she didn't hide her displeasure at all. (He wasn't sure whether he should be happy or not about that.)

"I am."

"Hah?" she questioned in disbelief.

"I am bothering the most suitable person." the brunet gave her a knowing smile.

Her eyes twitched at his insinuation. "And why would I be the most suitable?" she drawled.

He grins, all sense of shyness completely gone. "Because you are the only one who is mature, calm and reading a book instead of running around." He pointed at the large red book before continuing. "You're very intelligent."

Hana's eyes widened for a split second, impressed by his observation. He was more keen then she had thought with those innocent caramel orbs of his. But that didn't mean she wanted to _play_ with him. He was..a few levels higher then the monkey's, but that didn't mean anything.

She gave him a careless wave before opening her book again. "Thanks but no thanks."

The brunet stared at her, contemplating something for a second before nodding. "Alright then."

Hana gave him a confused glance at his sudden consensus before going back to her book.

But not before she felt a unknown pang of loneliness inside.

* * *

...Or so she had thought.

Hana's eyes twitched in annoyance at the brightly smiling boy in front of her.

She just wanted to read her damn book! Was that too much to ask?

"Do you feel like playing with me today?" he practically chirped. The smug bastard.

"No." she snapped.

"When will you feel like it?" he persisted.

She ignored him in favour of reading her book. It was getting to a good part too!

"Do you..." he started hesitantly. "not like Tsu-kun?"

She peered at him from her book, seeing his wide caramel orbs shaking and his lip quivering. The look he had on now could make anyone obey-

"Yes."

-but Hana was not 'anyone', she hated children, especially crying children so those kind of faces did not affect her. It only lowered her opinion of him.

Seeing this, Tsuna pouted.

He mumbled something that sounded suspiciously like _"Tch, didn't work." _before plopping down.

Right.

Next.

_To her._

"You're invading my space bubble." she hissed, scooting to the left, away from the fluffy brunet. She would never judge a book by the cover _ever_ again, who knew someone so innocent and weak looking could be such a persistent nuisance?

The brunet just blinked innocently, moving even closer.

"Will you play with me now?"

She gave him the evil eye before placing her book down. "Fine!" she huffed. "If only so you won't bother me again."

He cheered, a brilliant smile on his face.

As they spent the day stacking word blocks together and seeing who could make the most English words, Hana admitted that (reluctantly) hanging with him might not be so bad after all.

Now if only she could stop him from giving her that stupid smile!

* * *

Tsuna found that he really liked 'playing' with Hana. She was the only one who was near his level of intelligence, and he found that he liked messing with her. It was like messing with Hibari, but he could actually get away with it since Hana didn't hit him...or bite him. He sincerely hoped that she wouldn't in the near future. Something told him that she could pack a mean punch if she wanted to. He also briefly wondered if Reborn's sadism was rubbing off of him.

He really hoped not.

All in all, it was a start of a beautiful new friendship.

Cue Hana's screech of denial here.

Tsuna was starting to feel pretty happy...living again wasn't so bad. What was he so worried about anyways? He was the Vonola Decimo, or Neo Primo-whichever sounded better. He defeated a marshmallow loving maniac who wanted to conquer the world, resolved the long conflicts between the Simon and Vongola Family, helped the Acrobaleno break their curse and survived the torturing of the number one hit man. Besides, at least this time it would be easier since he _knew_ what was coming.

On hindsight, the brunet really should have accounted that _nothing_ was ever _easy_ for him.

Naivety thy name is Tsuna.

* * *

_Friends are precious. Even if you end up annoying said friend and she wants to strangle you._


	3. First Signs of Trouble

****Disclaimer: ****I don't own KHR!

**Author's Note: **Oh my gosh-41 follows, 33 favourites and 11 reviews. Thank you guys so muccchhhhh. I appreciate it! On another note, I edited the first chapter and prologue-but its nothing that big so I guess its fine? Sorry if there are any mistakes, and sorry for the boring chapter urgh..trying to build the relationships and set everything up. The next few chapters will probably be longer, so sorry for the shortness.

Drop a review? Critiques are fine too~ As long as they're productive~

* * *

**Chapter 2**

Kurokawa Hana stared at the fluffy brunet as he stuffed his face with cake, fluffs of cream and crumbs dotting his cheek. (She would have smacked him if he was any more messier.) He was smiling that stupid smile again, cheeks flushed and an expression of pure bliss was plastered on his face.

She herself had a piece of cake on the plate in front of her. But that was not the most important issue. Nope, far from it actually.

The issue was a single question.

Why the _heck_ was she at his house again?

* * *

It had started off quite normally, a sunny day with a healthy breakfast before her parents dropped Hana off at school. The usual greetings were exchanged and her teacher talked a bit before she finally let all the kids run loose for a 'break'. Funny how break time was half the school time, with the other half being simple work, nap time and lunch time.

Hana had been reading her book again since she never finished it due to countless interruptions from a rather persistent brunet. The ass.

The brunet had bothered her every single day. EVERY. SINGLE. DAY. Did the boy have no life?!

What was worse was the fact that she actually _liked _hanging with him. He would always come up with some kind of game that was rather (she grudgingly admitted) interesting to play. So when 5 minutes passed and the dark brunette was still left alone, peacefully reading her book without any interruptions, she was wary. Dropping her book, she scanned the classroom, looking for the familiar spiky brown hair.

None was found.

Her lips tilted into a frown, standing up before walking to the teacher.

"Sensei. Where is Sawada?"

The teacher blinks, "Kurokawa, didn't you notice? Sawada is absent today."

The dark brunette froze. _He was? _How did she not notice? Then again...the brunet always seemed to blend in when class was in session, only seeming to stand out and glow when he bothered her. She bit her lip, annoyed that she hadn't noticed and a bit annoyed that she was slightly worried. _Nothing had happened to him right?_

The rest of the day went on so painstaking slowly that Hana felt like time had decided to stop just to piss her off. By the end of the day, she felt like ripping her hair out. Darn that Sawada! Soon, the bell rung and she made a beeline to the exit, she was not going to drown in her worries! Oh hell no, she was going to get to the bottom of this and then scold the boy for skipping school.

Little did Hana know, she was already too deep into the enigma known as Tsuna.

She would never be able to separate from him after this, but she had a sinking feeling that she didn't really want to anyway.

* * *

Kurokawa Hazuki was not a woman easily surprised. Being a stern woman in her late twenties with a mature and understanding daughter, nothing ever deterred or shocked her. She took everything with an analytical eye, keeping calm and handling everything efficiently. Hazuki wasn't one of the best lawyers for nothing after all. She shifted her glasses as she glanced at her watch. _School was going to end soon. Precisely...now. _

The sound of the bell rang, and she looked smug as she stepped out of her car-slamming it shut.

She knew her daughter's personality and that the dark brunette would take her time walking out. Calmly, but not sluggishly or lazily.

Hazuki was rather surprised when she was proven wrong when Hana ran out, disheveled and huffing-hair tangled and slightly messy.

She was down right shocked when her usually mature daughter demanded her to drive her somewhere quickly and out of breath- a friend's house she had mentioned. (She had gotten the address from a frazzled teacher.)

But Hazuki took that to stride, immediately agreeing seeing the panicked look on the dark brunette's face.

It looked like her daughter had finally found someone important.

She tried to ignore the excitement in her heart, because god forbid she would start screaming in happiness.

It was just too damn embarrassing!

* * *

The dark brunette eyed the gate in distaste while glancing at the door warily. Her mother had left for an urgent job so she was left alone. She was rather thankful of it actually, now her mother didn't need to see the 6 year old pacing in front of the house cowardly.

She hesitated, a hand hovering near the gate..the brunet would probably tease her about being 'worried'. She felt her eye twitch at that.

Frustrated, Hana was just about to leave when the door opened to reveal a rather pretty looking brunette. She looked awfully familiar...

"Araa-are you Tsu-kun's friend?"

Hana froze, glancing at the woman who was emitting flowers and sparkles. _So that's where he got it from..._

She gave her a stiff shrug which the brunette somehow translated to 'YES! I am Tsu-kun's best friend!'

In the span of two minutes, Hana was ushered into the house and seated at the table while the smiling brunette continued to serve platters of snacks onto the table. "Ahh, I'm so happy Tsu-kun has such a good friend like you!" the brunette gushed, pouring the 6 year old tea.

Hana's eyes twitched. The dark brunette faintly wondered if making her feel like ripping her hair out was a inherited trait in the Sawada household.

As Tsuna's mother began to babble happily, Hana learned that the cheerful woman was Sawada Nana, who insisted to be called 'Nana-san'. Hana thought that the woman was rather ditzy and careless. She hadn't even said a single word yet, but she was already rushed into the house and treated so hospitably. What if she was some sort of _serial ax murderer_? Then what? The dark brunette could already _see_ the woman inviting some shady, dangerous hit man into her home with open arms, even allowing him to _live_ with her.

Her thoughts were interrupted by a raspy cough as footsteps were heard coming from the upstairs.

"Kaa-san? Did someone come?"

Hana stiffened at his familiar voice, sounding rather raspy. She felt a pang of something unknown, not liking the way he sounded. He sounded so tired and weak...And as Sawada Tsunayoshi came down, she realized how truly weary he was. Seeing his shape made her feel even worse, his eyes were dull and his skin was too pale. His fluffy hair seemed to be deflating and dishevelled, he was still wearing his pajamas that had tuna fish patterned all over it. He looked up and spotted the dark brunette, eyes widening.

"Kurokawa-san?!"

* * *

Tsuna felt like absolute crap. His head was throbbing, his nose was stuffed and he felt like something was stuck down his throat. There was also this numbing feeling that made him feel cold. Lifeless even. Tsuna wrapped his arms around himself, though it did nothing to help. But even worse was that he felt so lonely in his own room, he supposed it was only time before he felt homesickness. The room was dark with the shades pulled closed and the door shut. It was too quiet and the silence bothered him, he felt as if he was truly alone. The brunet missed his friends, even if they were over the top and crazy (even when they blew up so much stuff and he ended up doing all the paper work). But it wasn't time to approach them yet. He would have to wait 8 more years till Reborn came. Surely he could last that long?

Moaning, he dug his face into his pillow, curling into a ball as his stomach growled. Tsuna faintly wondered if he would die if he didn't receive love and attention just like a rabbit. They were creatures of love after all...humans were too. He used to be fine being alone, albeit a bit depressed. But then his friends came. His family.

How could he ever go back to being alone when he became so used to them? Used to their care and affection?

Frowning, he shook his head. Nana loved and cared for him. That would be enough for now won't it?

Even if he didn't have amazing friends who would do anything for him.

_And he would do the same. For all of them._

Even if he didn't have those fun times as the family all hanged out together and they were all so boisterous and loud - causing so much damage and paper work.

_And he wouldn't trade them for the world. _

Even when he saw Takeshi everyday and he only treated Tsuna as a classmate. A stranger.

_Not the Rain Guardian. Not the best friend and family._

Tears blurred his vision and he sniffed. This was definitely his 6 year old self crying he insisted. Children just seemed to have wacky hormones.

After all...how could he be so weak? His head was throbbing familiarly again but he chose to ignore it this time. If he wanted to think about his family, then he _will_ think about them. He clung to his thoughts, not allowing them to be washed away by the ache. Not this time. If they could see him right now, crying while hiding underneath his cover..how would they react?

The clinking sound of plates snapped him out of his thoughts and he lifted his head, confused. He could faintly hear Nana talking to someone? Reluctantly, he sat up and scurried out of bed. Slipping on his slippers, he went down the steps slowly, trying to concentrate even though everything seemed hazy and his vision was slightly blurry. He blinked blearily before spotting a familiar person.

Hana.

She looked shocked..and a bit..worried?

"Kurokawa-san?"

He blinked again. Nope. It was still the same Hana who would yell at him for being persistent.

"E-eh? Why are you here?"

She sniffed. "You were playing truant."

Tsuna blinked, the underlying meaning sinking in. _You weren't at school so I came to check on you._

He felt a wash of warmth filling him as he smiled at her worry, he was wrong. He wasn't alone. He had friends, well-a friend in this world. Tsuna was surprised about the sudden visit though, he didn't expect her to come since she always complained that he was annoying, though she did seem to be having more fun lately. Looking at her now, he couldn't but feel that it was a shame that he and the other Hana didn't become friends. Even though the dark brunette was Kyoko's best friend and Onii-san's girlfriend, Tsuna never really interacted with her. He didn't delve deeper into her, bother to _know_ more about her besides the fact that she was smart and had a sharp tongue. Now that he thought about it, she stuck to Kyoko a lot, always protecting the ginger. She was extremely loyal.

The brunet idly wondered what he did to deserve such loyalty from the girl, even if it was only a small portion of it.

And as Nana ushered the both of them up the stairs and into the 6 year old's room, promising to bring cake up-Tsuna had a feeling that this friendship would last for a long, _long_ time.

* * *

And so, this brings them up to their current situation.

Hana glared at the cake as if it was the source of all her troubles. And it was. Kinda. Sorta. Okay maybe not really. But she needed something to glare at so it would do for now.

The brunette looked at her in amusement before finishing up his cake. "Kurokawa-san, are you going to eat that?" he pointed to her piece. She gave him a scowl in return before picking up her fork. "Aren't you too sick to be eating cake?"

_Thats a bit late seeing how I've finished already, _he thought, grinning. "Nope!" he replied, popping the 'P'. "I'm feeling a lot better now." And he was being truly honest, his chest didn't hurt and his heart felt so light now-a burden lifted. He now only had a slight sore throat. "Besides, how could I resist cake?" That was true too, he had grown to love sweets and cakes after being Neo Vongola Primo. It was the perfect treat after having to deal with paper work and his crazy guardians who just loved to destroy cities and billing damages to him. They were just the _perfect_ angels. Note the sarcasm. It was even worse with the Varia. His guardians and the assassin group just seemed to love competing to see who can cause the most damage.

Hana snorts in disbelief, but Tsuna could see a trace of relief flooding her features.

"Oh yeah! Now that you're here, I have something to say..."

* * *

Kurokawa Hana eyed the ginger warily as amber eyes blinked.

Kyoko tilted her head in curiosity at the pair towering over her. She had been doing her usual, painting pictures in the dirt before two kids approached her. The ginger didn't mind playing alone..but that didn't mean she liked it either. She was a bit ..lonely? Left out? But drawing pictures was fun, so it didn't affect her. That much.

Kyoko recognized the dark brunette as Kurokawa Hana, the quiet, smart girl who was often alone until a certain brunette popped up. Her eyes landed on said brunette who was scratching the back of his neck sheepishly. He was Sawada Tsuna...or something like that? He was the clumsy boy with bright brown eyes.

What were they doing here? They usually spent time inside playing with blocks...

Hana shot Tsuna a look of disbelief. _You want me to talk to her?_

Tsuna simply nodded with a bright smile.

She sniffed reluctantly before offering a hand to the crouching Kyoko. "Do you want to..'play_'..._" she wrinkled her nose in distaste at the word before continuing. "...with us?"

Kyoko seemed to be surprised, amber orbs widening before she gave them a breath taking smile. "Un!"

Hana's eyes twitched, feeling a huge sense of deja vu.

Great. Now she had _two_ people with sparkling smiles that could probably burn her eyes.

Lovely.

* * *

Tsuna felt relieved as he saw Kyoko smile again, it seemed as she hadn't smiled in ages.

The relief was short lived however as he thought about how becoming friends with her was a bad idea. He would only drag her into his mess after all. Even Hana...

The brunet bit his bottom lip in worry._ Hell_, would Hana even continue to stay friends with him after knowing about the Mafia? She would probably punch him in the face or something for dragging her into such trouble.

Well, he thought sighing, at least he had high pain tolerance.

* * *

Hana blinked as she was once again, awarded with bright smiles.

TWO._ IDENTICAL_. SMILES.

Well..not identical. No one's smile would ever match up to Tsuna's, he was her first..friend after all. The word was still foreign on her tongue.

As Kyoko continued to stack her blocks, Hana secretly elbowed the fluffy brunet, hissing. "Are you guys twins separated from birth or what?"

The brunette just gave her an innocent look. "What do you mean? We look nothing alike."

Hana scowled. "You guys have similar eyes and expressions..and _that_ smile!"

Tsuna simply hummed in response, searching for a 'A' block to finish his word which happened to be 'Tuna'. "Kyoko-chan is cute, right?"

"You just implied yourself as cute didn't you?" she accused.

The brunet simply chuckles, shaking his head. "Of course not Hana-chan."

Hana froze at her name, mouth opened in surprise. He had never ever used her name, only calling her 'Kurokawa-san'. Despite her current irritation at him, she couldn't help but feel her heart warm at the use of her first name. Only her parents had ever referred to her that way after all...

"Ah! Um..if that is okay with you?" he mumbles shyly.

She huffs before her gaze drifted away. She mumbled something quietly that Tsuna could not catch. "..an."

"Eh?"

"I said drop the 'chan'!" She hissed, embarrassment clouding her words and features. "..'chan' sounds wrong."

Tsuna beams at her in response, summoning sparkles and other shiny things. "Okay Hana!"

She was right, his smile was simply incomparable.

* * *

Kyoko panted as she ran out the door with a short; "bye mum! Dad!" Her brother was currently out training. Again.

Sasagawa Hiro blinked, looking up from his newspaper as Sasagawa Mei waved her daughter goodbye.

"Where is Kyoko going?"

Mei shot him a stern glare, "Dear, if you were paying attention- Kyoko said she was going to hang out with her friends." Mei had been pleasantly surprised to see Kyoko playing with two others when she came to pick her up. She had been so worried when her daughter always played alone, but now she was relieved. Her daughter was meant to be happy and smiling with others after all.

Mei thought back to the two kids, a short brunet with the most fluffiest hair and a big sincere smile and a quiet dark haired girl with calculative, intelligent eyes and a mature air around her. The two kids were really different from each other but she was taken with both equally. They would definitely be able to take care of Kyoko.

"What? Is it...a boy?"

The ginger frowned at her husband. "Hush dear, Tsunayoshi-kun is a good boy. Besides..." she continued thoughtfully. "I wouldn't mind having him as a son in law!"

Hiro dropped his newspaper with shock.

"She is _not_ getting married to him!"

"Hiro! I was just saying, besides- she's only 6!"

* * *

Kyoko darted down the streets, hoping she wouldn't be late. The first time she had a play date with Tsuna and Hana and she was late? Unacceptable! (Technically, she still had 10 minutes; but Kyoko had wanted to be early.)

She turned around a corner and crashed into someone, yelping as she fell back. "Oh!"

"I-I'm sorry!" she stuttered.

A light chuckle filled the air before a hand grabbed her arm and pulled her up. Kyoko blinked owlishly before recognizing the boy.

"Ah! Tsuna-kun!"

The brunet smiles in response and nods. "You okay? I-I'm sorry about that." he apologized sheepishly.

The ginger blushed. "I'm okay."

He gave her a gentle nod.

"Ah- what are you doing here?" Didn't he live somewhere else?

"I'm uh... actually here to pick you and Hana up."

"Oh.." she replied, distracted by his fluffy hair. It looked so...touchable!

"Sawada?" a familiar voice questioned. Kyoko turned around to see Hana standing and holding a few plastic bags in her hand, a long scarf wrapped around her neck.

"Yo- Hana!" Tsuna greets, grinning. "What are you carrying?"

Hana huffs, passing a bag to his outstretched hand before answering. "Mother wanted me to bring some snacks over." She gave a nod to Kyoko. "Hi, Kyoko."

"Hi Hana-chan!" she smiled amiably.

The brunet pouts. "No 'hi' for me? And why can't I call you Hana-chan?" he joked.

Hana rolls her eyes at his dramatics. "Hi. And it sounds downright weird when you do it so shush."

Kyoko giggles at their banter, staying quiet. She shivered lightly at the cold wind passing through and wished she had brought her scarf and gloves. Winter was coming soon.

She startled as she felt something drape around her neck. It was Hana's long purple scarf! The other half of it was still wrapped around Hana though, so they were basically sharing it. "Come on Kyoko." The ginger blinks before looking at Hana and Tsuna's out stretched hand. The two had shifted their bags of snacks to their other hand. "Lets go." They said in unison. The two look at each other strangely before chuckling. Kyoko smiles brightly before taking their hands and enjoying the warmth of her friends.

Her _friends_.

They were like magic words.

Kyoko laughs again, this time with indescribable joy and the two gave her a curious look. She shakes her head and they shrug before joking again. The soft banters and jokes filled her ears as the trio continued to walk to Tsuna's house at a comfortable pace.

She had everything she wanted.

* * *

Tsuna was 7 when trouble first punched him in the face. (Quite literally.)

He had been heading to Hana's house to meet with her and Kyoko, having decided to watch a movie together and Tsuna was looking forward to it quite a bit. Humming cheerfully, he continued to walk- passing the Namimori river bank. A figure catches his attention however and he stops, curious. The brunet squints to see a dark haired boy with his arms crossed, laying on the grassy bank, napping.

_Something is familiar about him... _

His hyper intuition seemed to be ringing but he just couldn't place the weird feeling. It was tingling...The brunet spots a flash of silver under the boy's arms and everything suddenly clicked. Tonfas. Hibari Kyoya. Cloud Guardian. Future prefect.

Tsuna almost let out a 'Hiiee!', but managed to shush himself in time. Tsuna glanced at the boy warily, Hibari had always been a light sleeper after all...

How could the brunet not recognize him? Then again..Tsuna had momentarily forgot that even the demon prefect had been a child once.

Cue shiver.

During his stay at Namimori, Tsuna had rarely seen the skylark due to said skylark running around punishing 'herbivores'. Shaking his head, he continued onwards. He really didn't want the future prefect to 'bite him to death', besides- he didn't think he could handle it at the moment. Plus- he didn't want to deal with the skylark, his tonfas were painful regardless of the fact that Hibari was only...9? But maybe he'd be ready in another..7 years?

Unfortunately, his clumsiness decided to kick in after being dead for a week. (The brunet swore that the Gods hated him and that this was all somehow Reborn's fault.) The poor boy lost his balance and footing, tilting toward the right and tumbling down the grassy bank...

...right onto a napping skylark.

.

.

_Welp. There goes the easy life._

* * *

_He didn't know if was purely an accident or simply the want of interacting with one of his guardians that made him trip and flatten the skylark. It could also just be a form of petty revenge for all the paper work he had to do due to his Cloud Guardian._

_._

_._

_He betted on the latter option. _

* * *

**Omake**

"How do you _do_ that?" Hana asked in disbelief.

Tsuna rose a brow in confusion. "Do what?"

She waved her arms in exasperation. "The _sparkles_! And occasionally some flowers come out when you smile!"

The brunet blinks, twisting his brows as he was even more confused. "What are you talking about? Only mom can summon the weird flowers and sparkles." He paused and looked thoughtful for a moment. "Kyoko too." he added.

"..."

Her friend was an idiot.

* * *

**Holiday Omake**

Sawada Tsunayoshi woke up one Thursday morning feeling relatively normal, which means..things were not normal. The brunet frowned, sliding off his bed and shivering as his feet touched the cold wooden floor. He spent some time trying to find his slippers before giving up and slinking down the stairs.

When he went down, he realized what was the problem.

It was too quiet.

His house had never been so quiet since Reborn came. It was almost eery…He passed the kitchen, darting his head in to see a empty room. There was no Fuuta, I-pin, Lambo, or even Bianchi. They were usually here….his eyes widen as the realization hit-wiping away any trace of sleepiness. Right, they weren't here yet. They hadn't even met yet..I-Pin and Lambo weren't even born yet. It was confusing honestly, sometimes he would still believe that he was in the other world, surrounded by loud noises and cheerful laughs, only to be pulled back harshly and see no one there.

Tsuna looked around, something was still off. His mother wasn't here.

Did she leave to buy something?

No..she wouldn't. Not this early.

His hyper intuition was not tingling or anything, so it wasn't bad. But he was still worried, his intuition might have missed something after all, he couldn't always depend on it.

Deciding to look for her, Tsuna dashed back up the stairs, yanking of his pajamas and shrugging on a orange hoodie before heading back down. He was greeted by a note on the front door.

It was a simple white card taped onto the door, the words and letters scrawled on neatly.

'Going out to get some presents.~

Tsu-kun, Mama needs you to go buy a cake at Confections. I already reserved one!'

The brunet frowned in confusion. Cake? Presents? Was today a special occasion of some sorts? Shrugging it off, he concentrated on the fact that his mother was safe. Thank god..

He didn't know what he would have done if something happened to her..they were still related to the Mafia so she could have gotten involved.

Just like in the other world.

He had told his mother about the Mafia when he became Neo Vongola Primo to avoid danger and to warn her to be careful. Nana had been stressed and overwhelmed at first before accepting it.

That didn't keep others from trying to assassinate her though..

Clenching his fists, he yanked the note off the door before going out. He would go get that cake she wanted, even if it was going to be a long walk.

* * *

It was a long walk. An hour in fact. He arrived at the door to his house, panting. He really needed to exercise. A lot.

To be honest, it would have only taken about 30 minutes, but he gotten lost on the way since he had never went to that cake shop before. Plus, the cake shop itself was pretty far. Oh..and he was prone to accidents.

Swinging the door open, he was greeted with a loud_ BANG_, colourful confetti and a shout in unison.

"Merry X-mas!"

The brunet blinked, mouth opened in shock and surprise while 3 pair of eyes looked at him. The sudden flash of light didn't help either.

"Kyoko? Hana?"

Kyoko beamed at him, a handheld confetti machine in her hands. "Tsuna-kun!"

Hana had one in her hands too, smirking at his shocked face. "Took you long enough to come back Sawada."

Nana smiled at her son, the source of the flash -a camera- in her hand.

"Welcome back Tsu-kun."

"Today is Christmas?!" he asked, shocked.

"Araa, Tsu-kun you didn't know?"

He shook his head sheepishly. "No.."

"Pass me the cake." Hana demanded, eyeing the box in his hands-that he luckily- did not drop.

He passed it to her and in turn she passed it to Nana. He briefly wondered why she even bothered to take it from him only to pass it to his mother.

...Logic.

"Tsu-kun, I'm going to cut the cake, you go ahead and go upstairs with Hana and Kyoko-chan, okay?"

Tsuna could only meekly nod before he was yanked upstairs by the two girls. The door was slammed shut as Hana shoved a box to him. The brunet blinked at the nicely wrapped box before another package was shoved into his arms.

"Wha?"

Hana snorts, leaning against his bed. "Its a gift dummy. From me and Kyoko."

"B-but I didn't get you-" he stutters and Hana interrupts him. "Don't worry about it and just take it Sawada."

Kyoko smiles. "Its a X-mas gift...and a gift for staying with us."

_For staying with them? _

He should be saying that, not the other way around. His eyes sting and he hastily rubs any oncoming tears away.

"Thank you." _Thank you for being here with me. Thank you for staying. Thank you for accepting me. Thank you so, so much. _

_And...Thank you for not leaving me alone._

When Tsuna was 6 (in the other world), he was alone. He was already gifted with the nickname 'Dame-Tsuna' (half way through the year) and no one would talk to him. He was unbearably lonely and any holidays were celebrated between him and his mom only since he had no friends. He was grateful he didn't have to go through it alone this time, the brunet wasn't sure if he could even survive the loneliness.

The two girls look at each other, both knowing that the 'thank you' wasn't only said for the present, but for something else too. Something more deep and probably something similar to what they were grateful about as well.

"Merry X-mas Sawada." Hana says with a small smile.

"Lets fill the next year with many more memories Tsuna-kun."

Tsuna gives them both a wobbly smile.

"Merry X-mas."

* * *

Outside the door stood a certain Sawada Nana with a tray full of cakes and drinks. She lets a smile linger on her lips before going back down the stairs.

"Let's wait a few more minutes shall we?"

She glances at the door again before whispering sweet words.

"You'll never be alone Tsu-kun. _Ever_."


	4. When things start to Burn

**Disclaimer: **KHR does not belong to me~

**Author's Note: **Oh gosh, I am so behind and I'm so, so sorry! I lied also, this is pretty short *bows down*. I had a block midway through this chapter and it was so hard to write! I am still not satisfied and I don't really like how half of this turned out, when I get more inspiration, I might fix it. Hope you guys like it though! If you have any questions or suggestions, please tell me! Reviews motivate me a lot! But oh gosh, thank you for the +80 follows, 59 favorites, and 19 reviews. It means so much and I'm very happy! My brother will read this when I reach 100 follows, which I hope will come soon~

Tell me how I'm doing and what you like and don't like!

**Important: Guys, I have a question regarding review replies. Should I reply by putting it on the chapter itself? Or just privately send a reply back? Thank you!**

**Stuff: **"Somehow, Nana's last sentence terrified me. As in really /terrified/ me."-readerdreamer5625  
I'm sorry, but this comment is freakin hilarious XD I didn't really realize it until you pointed it out lol. (I agree, especially with the way I worded it)

* * *

**Chapter 3**

Hibari was not happy.

Then again, the skylark was never happy. (Except when he was off biting herbivores for their herbivorous actions of course.)

First, his parents came home and disturbed his peace and quiet. Then they brought home a bunch of noisy 'friends' with them. Needless to say, he was not pleased with the crowding.

One had even pinched his cheeks and another dubbed him as 'Kyo-chan'. He bit them to death before escaping- no, not escaping. (He did not run from anyone.) _Strategically retreating _by jumping out of the window. His parents were quite naggy and he did not want to deal with his mother's 'I am so disappointed in you' look nor his father's 'No more tonfas for you' look. Psh, as if his tonfas could be confiscated.

Heads would roll first.

Hibari's mother worked as detective and his father worked as a cop. However, they both were often out for long periods of time due to their job and Hibari was usually left alone in the house. (With the occasional maid and house workers.) He enjoyed being alone actually, he took after his father in this aspect. But Hibari Kuro could put up with crowding for his wife, Suzume. He was strong, quiet and aloof, just like Hibari. His father was the one who actually gifted him with tonfas. He was also the one who regretted it when he was forced to pay for the repair bills.

The skylark just thought that his father was very whipped.

Hibari Suzume was calm, polite and smiled a lot. She was a stickler for manners, and often scolded the father and son duo for their...Hibari-ness. Apparently it was a family trait. Suzume actually had Chinese blood in her, she was a half actually, making Hibari a quarter. (Not that he knew of course.) She didn't like leaving her only son home alone, but her job called for her to travel so it couldn't be helped. She did try to visit as many times as possible and sent him many cards and gifts.

Hibari shared no traits with her in personality, only taking after her steel colored eyes. He enjoyed seeing his mother scold his father, it was very, very entertaining. He did love his parents...in a distant sort of way; one that involved not showing his affections openly, his father was like that too.

All in all, the Hibari family was very famous with it's aloof father, tonfa wielding son and polite mother. They were also famous for there ability to destroy things.

Hibari grunted as he continued to walk down the street, shooting piercing glares at anyone who would even look at him. Of course, the people all ran and the crowds dispersed, leaving everything peaceful and quiet. Just the way he liked it. He was already upset and people knew that when regular Hibari was bad, a moody Hibari was even worse. The skylark continued to walk, he didn't know where he was going- it was just mindless walking. Nothing more, nothing less.

He passed the Namimori bank, eyeing the soft green grass. The skylark felt rather sleepy since he had woken up so early due to his parents. A little bit couldn't hurt right? And the grass looked really soft too...

A few minutes later, Hibari was settled comfortably on the grass, napping peacefully.

He dreamed of clouds floating freely in the orange tinted sky, unrestricted, unbounded.

* * *

There were many things Hibari Kyoya hated.

He hated crowding. (Whether it being himself crowding or others crowding in his presence. Two is still a crowd in his opinion.)

He hated herbivores/people who disturbed the peace of Namimori. (loud noises included) Well, actually- he hated people/herbivores in general.

He hated contact.

And lastly, he hated people/herbivores who disturbed his sleep.

Almost all of these events listed took place when something crashed into him -waking him up-, and squirmed on top of him. The..._thing_ also elbowed him in the face. And then proceeded to scream his ears out.

Hibari had one level of anger. This anger was when people crowded, disturbed the peace of Namimori or damaged property in Namimori. (As well as a bunch of other stuff.) Now he was 3 times angrier then that.

More then angry, the skylark swung his tonfa into the intruder's stomach (or at least he thought it was his stomach) and was satisfied to hear a yelp of pain before the mound of flesh finally decided to get off from his person. Good riddance. But he was not done yet, far from it. The preparatory was going to suffer a slow and painful beating. (He would say death, but he was sure that his father would not appreciate having a murderer as a son when he was only 9.)

No one messed with him and got away with it uninjured.

* * *

Tsuna groaned as something jabbed into his gut; tonfas, his brain suggested. He quickly rolled off the skylark's body and scrambled to his feet. He knew that Hibari would probably not listen to his explanations since well...that was just how he was. The skylark had a one track mind of attacking first and then talking later. Wait. Cross out that 'talking later' portion, he never talked. Just left you bleeding on the floor before walking away. The ass.

"For disturbing my sleep, I will bite you to death."

Hibari swung forward, smashing his tonfa non too lightly into the brunet's arm. Tsuna cried out in alarm, flinching and backing away as quick as possible. He stared at his soon to be bruising arm and sniffed, cursing his clumsiness. Not giving him much time to rest, the skylark approached to jab his tonfa into the brunet's left shoulder. Tsuna urged his little body to move to the right, but was too slow and the steel tonfas grazed it, making him topple to the ground.

He was going to lose.

He was going to lose _and_ get beaten up to a pulp.

Tsuna squeaked as the tonfas missed him by mere centimeters, smashing into the grassy soil. The skylark rose a brow at this, slightly impressed at the boy's dodging skills and annoyed that he kept on missing. He narrowed his eyes and increased his efforts in smacking the boy. Tsuna shrieked as a tonfa smacked him right on the shoulder. Gulping nervously, he rolled and barely managed to evade another jab and scrambled to his feet. He wouldn't last any longer, the brunet had no stamina in his current form, he was disadvantaged with his weak limbs and size. And he didn't have his flames nor his ability to fly. Oh how he missed them.

Coming to a decision, Tsuna did the only thing he could.

He ran.

And then he tripped. Now face flat in the grass, Tsuna wondered why he was such a clutz. Everything was also very anticlimactic. Urgh.

* * *

Hibari stared at the herbivore in disbelief as said herbivore face planted onto the ground.

"...You are an idiot."

He received a muffled reply. "..Ah row." (I know)

Hibari's left eye twitched as he wondered if the brunet was really worth beating up.

Then again...he did disturb his nap and the thought is quickly thrown away as he attacks once more, irked. The brunet yelps again and struggles to his feet, trying to placate him. "Um! I'm really sorry about it! It was an acci- oww!"

_Jab. Smash. A hit to the chest._

"I'llgiveyousomepineapples!" (Because clearly Tsuna was not thinking right and was a bit curious. Just a bit.)

A pause.

Then a narrowing of eyes and a hateful glare.

"I hate pineapples."

"Oh, well-oww!"

The swings seemed to become (if possible) even more vigorous and hard. _Note to self, never offer Hibari pineapples. Ever again._

_Swing to his shoulder. __A blow to his ribs._

Tsuna decided that he_ really_ needed to help Hibari work on his people skills.

Or at least immobilize the skylark so he could just sit still and listen for once.

But at least he learned that Hibari hated pineapples. And Mukuro for a reason.

* * *

Thoroughly beaten up and punished for being so 'herbivorous', 'disturbing the peace of Namimori' and for 'offering of pineapples', Tsuna was left on the ground. The brunet groaned at the bruises and marks all over his body. And the pain. _OH THE PAIN. _Even when he was so little, Hibari could pack a powerful punch...or a powerful jab with a pair of tonfas. Though it wasn't that bad..could have been worse. Cringing, he climbed to his feet and continued his walk to Hana's, wincing. Hopefully she wouldn't freak out, but he had a feeling she would.

He sighed.

* * *

The door swung open quickly, and Tsuna almost fell from the force and suddenness of it.

"Sawada! You're late! Why did-" the reprimand came to an abrupt stop as dark eyes widened in surprise at his current state. Her gaze traveled from his split lip to his bruised arms and legs. His hair was messy and had some dirt mixed in, shirt full of grass stains and his face was slightly twisted in pain. Hana quickly yanked the brunet in, careful of his injuries before bombarding him with questions.

"What the heck happened?! Who did this?" she demanded, hissing as her eyes continued to dart around checking for any other damage.

"Oh, umm.."

"Tsuna-kun?!"

"Urk! Kyoko!?"

The ginger dashed forward, eyeing his injuries with shock. Her amber eyes swirled with panic but there was an underlining of calmness to it, as if she'd seen such injuries before. Then again, Onii-san also got injured a lot since he liked challenging others.

"Kyoko, take care of him. I'm gonna go grab the first aid box!" Hana barked, running out of the room. Kyoko nodded before scurrying over and checking over him, gently prodding some bruises.

"Guys, there's no need to worry! I'm ok- oww!" he hissed as fingers poked at a rather painful bruise. He was met with -surprisingly- angry amber eyes. Kyoko looked both livid and concerned, something that surprised the brunet since she was _never_ angry. She was always full of smiles and a part of him felt that the angry look looked wrong on her yet another part of him felt somehow gratified by it.

"Tsuna-kun! You are not okay! What happened?"

"Sawada probably got into a fight. Like a monkey." Hana interrupted with a huff, entering the room with a box of supplies in her hands. "I'm actually disappointed."

Tsuna inwardly flinched at her cutting remarks, it had been quite a while since she called him a monkey, and her disappointment stung. He _hated_ disappointing people. And if she thought fighting was that bad, wait till she learns that he's the boss of a Mafia group. He was gonna suffer a slow and painful death...

The brunet winced, startled as he felt something cool wiping his cheeks. Kyoko had a towel in her hand, trying to clean his wounds and his eyes softened at the care. Hana was also helping, bandaging some of the more painful wounds. She tightened the white cloth around his arm and he yelped at the pain. "Ow!"

"That's what you get, idiot." she snorted, but loosened the cloth a bit. "So what happened?"

Tsuna sighed, knowing that he couldn't get away with it, at least not this time. "Hibari Kyoya."

Hana blinked in surprise, a certain understanding flooding her features. "Wait-that guy did it? The self proclaimed carnivore?!"

The brunet shrugged, a bit amused at her shock.

Dark eyes narrowed. "What did you do?"

Tsuna inwardly cringed at this, amusement dissipating- he was gonna get a scolding for sure.

"Well?" she demanded, impatient. He shot a pitiful and pleading look at Kyoko who only shook her head, leaving him to the mercy of Hana's glare and biting comments. Traitor! But then she smiles and that thought gets thrown out of the window. He couldn't even get mad at her!

Huffing, he began sheepishly. "Umm...well, you see..I kind of disturbed his nap."

"..." Silence filled the air as the two girls gave him identical looks of disbelief.

"It was an accident! I swear! I...may or may not have also accidentally hit him in the face and flattened him." he admitted.

Hana closed her eyes, taking in a deep breath. _Breathe._ Count from 1 to 10. Calm down. Breathe out.

Yeah..._Not happening_.

Eyes flaring open, she proceeded to smack the brunet in the head and hopefully knock some sense into him too. "And why the heck would you do that?!"

"I accidentally tripped!" he whined, edging away from the temperamental girl.

Kyoko simply sighed as Hana continued to yell at the brunet.

At least Tsuna was okay.

* * *

Tsuna had a problem.

Just a tiny one.

The brunet glared at the paper that was caught in the branches of a rather tall tree, taunting him with its height. He had been doing his homework on the porch when an unexpected gust of wind blew it away. Very cliche. And it was slightly ironic, he would've gotten it easily if he could fly, but alas he couldn't. Bummer.

Huffing, he proceeded to climb the tree; hands clutching the rough bark as he began to scale up the trunk. He soon reached the top. Kneeling on a sturdy branch, the brunet stretched his hand as far as he could, fingers twitching before he finally managed to snatch the sheet. Smirking in triumph, he pulled on it only for the wind to blow again, leaves smacking him the face; obscuring his vision as he fell off the branch.

Tsuna clenched his eyes shut, muscles tensing as he prepared for the impact. He faintly felt his hands flare with warmth before he opened his eyes again.

He was not in pain.

He was also not on the ground.

Blinking, his gaze traveled to his hands where orange flames flickered. He was floating...and something was burning!

He gasped, the flames disappearing at his shock as he landed on his butt.

"Oww.."

Shaking off the pain, he scrambled to his feet; looking around to search for his sheet. He _hoped_ he didn't do what he thought he did. Instead of seeing a white sheet of paper, his eyes met with a small pile of ashes that were already spreading due to the wind.

Tsuna blanched.

He burnt his homework.

That he had spent 30 minutes on. (It was a simple sheet, a small project in regarding his dreams.)

He collapsed on his hands and knees, wailing internally before pausing.

He spent _way_ too much time with Mukuro.

* * *

After calming down and vowing to do it again later, he concentrated back on what just happened. He had summoned his flames...but it could have been just a fluke. Frowning, he concentrated, trying to put all his feelings into it. His resolve and his want to protect his friends, Tsuna never wanted anything to happen to them ever again. Flames burst from his hands, flickering unevenly and licking his hands. He flinched as the heat burned him this time and allowed the flames to die out. The brunet studied his hand that was slightly pink and decided that control would be needed. He could get a head start on managing his flames.

Tsuna sighed, not knowing whether to be happy or sad that he could conjure his flames again. (It did burn his homework after all!) But if he could manage them, then life would be a lot easier and he could finally fly again.

He smiled at his new found resolution.

But first he had to finish that homework...

* * *

Orange flames danced on his palm and Tsuna let a smug smile adorn his lips. Finally. The brunet could finally control it after a few weeks of practicing. He had to admit that it was harder then he thought without his gloves and ring though. They were perfect mediums for his flames, but he would get them later so it would be fine. Tsuna played around with his flames, coaxing it to mold itself into a shape of a bunny. His flames no longer burned anymore, though his hands would usually get sore and sometimes even have slight blisters if he used them too long. He could touch things with his flames and still leave that object safe and burnt free as long as he controlled it enough.

He allowed the flames to orbit around his finger, slowly widening before allowing it to dissipate.

* * *

On somewhat of a whim, Sawada Tsunayoshi decided that he wanted to get a job.

Because he was set to become the Neo Vongola Primo, Tsuna never worked part time or got a job or anything like that. He spent most of his time training and learning about the Mafia world. The brunet decided that a job would be necessary (in this world) so he could earn his own money and buy stuff (specifically things that could be useful to him now or in the future) without asking his mother all the time. For goodness sake, he was a 24- no, 26 year old man, (in a 7 year old body) he felt downright ashamed to ask for money.

So he got a job. Well, it wasn't really a 'job', Tsuna was pretty sure people wouldn't hire 7 year olds anyways. It was simple, he would help out people in the neighborhood for some loose cash. It could vary from finding a missing pet, raking leaves, cutting grass and anything else that a kid could have done. He was slightly, just slightly glad that he had such a...'adorable' face. The tips were nice, though he never accepted too much since he did not want to take advantage of them. The tasks were quite simple, the hardest being finding lost pets, they could seriously put up a good fight and even though Namimori was a small town, it wasn't _that_ small.

Tsuna was also on one of those 'jobs' when Hana and Kyoko bumped into him. He had spent hours hunting down a big brown cat and had finally subdued it enough after being bitten, scratched and so forth. To say they were surprised was an understatement.

They had been walking by when Tsuna suddenly popped his head through a bush, hair matted with dirt, scratches covering his face.

"..."

"..."

"...Umm...hi?"

"Sawada." Hana began, pinching the bridge of her nose. "What the heck are you doing?

The brunet lifted the heavy cat up in response. "Retrieving a cat for an old lady."

"And why are you in the bushes?"

Tsuna grimaced at the memory. "The cat was there and it put up a good fight."

"Eh? Tsuna-kun- are you just helping? Thats very nice of you." Kyoko questioned.

"Nah- It's a job." he answered with a smile and a shrug. "I do simple tasks in exchange for some money."

"You're working?!" Hana asked in disbelief, slightly horrified. "You're too young!"

Tsuna laughed sheepishly. "Nothing that complicated, it's basically community service- the only difference being that I get paid. Besides, I thought you would appreciate someone working, since it's mature and stuff." he pointed out.

The dark brunette bit her lip. "Working is good, but..it's dangerous. There are a lot of suspicious people out there Sawada."

The brunet paused before giving her a knowing smile. "I know." Hana couldn't help but feel that he was talking about something completely different, something had flashed in his eyes. It told of unknown maturity but she would not ask and prod about it. She would wait to hear about whatever it was.

"Then we'll help." she demanded instead. She could at least watch over him like this.

"Eh? Oh- but you guys are busy and Kyoko pro-"

"Not at all Tsuna-kun! I would love to help!"

Cue flower and sparkles.

Tsuna inwardly sobbed at his inability to say no.

And so they both joined.

* * *

Tsuna leaned against a tree, staring at his hands once again as he allowed a small flame to swirl around on his palm. When he missed his guardians and family, he would seek comfort from his familiar sky flame. It was a part of the bond he shared with his _famiglia. _The flames were related to the Mafia and Vongola, his family as the Vongola. He allowed the flames to grow and Tsuna smiled at the warm fire. All was well so far, no one suspected a thing and he didn't do anything stupid yet. He only had to wait 6 more years for Reborn to come and for everything to start. His spartan tutor was going to be-

"What the..heck?!"

Tsuna practically jumped from his position on the tree as he swiveled his head behind him, horrified at the familiar voice.

And there she was.

Kurokawa Hana stood before him, lips parted in shock and disbelief.

Tsuna swore it could not get any worse.

"Sawada, you-"

And then Hibari jumped down from the tree.

.

.

...And now it just did.

* * *

_Tsuna likes to think that he's totally normal even when he can fly and poop out orange flames._

* * *

**Thanks to: Kaed1234, Lawrensu, readerdreamer5625, gore23, Kyogre, Natsu Yuuki, Yenaya for the lovely reviews! **


	5. Supremely Screwed

**Disclaimer:** Not mine!

**A/N: **Oh gawd this is a horrible update and I'm so sorry. I'm really sorry, I've been busy and this chapter was hard to write and I don't like this at all. I'll probably go back to it and fix it later, I can't get it to flow! ; u ; If I have any mistakes or plot holes, do tell me. I'm exhausted, but the next chapters will be better hopefully. Urk. And about Hyper Intuition, I think it only helps when there is danger and it helps to judge people? Idk.

On a side note, tysm for the +145 follows wowwiee.

* * *

**Chapter 4**

He blamed Reborn.

It was all his tutor's fault that he was so unlucky and ended jinxing himself so often. He blamed it on him! What next? Byakuran will come falling out of the sky? The brunet inwardly shivered. He hoped he didn't run into _him_ any time soon.

Any ways, it was so _not_ his fault.

"This is all just a dream. You're both hallucinating." he started seriously. The brunet was -sadly- awarded with two unamused expressions.

Okaaayy, so they didn't buy it. Time for plan B, which was to bull shit his way out of it. (Plan A was to convince them they didn't see anything.)

"I um...rainbow..fire..unicorns? I was given this...power by a unicorn who uh. Wanted me to save the world and uhh..become a bad ass Mafia boss?" Tsuna blabbed weakly. He never said he was a good liar. (Though he wasn't exactly _lying_ that much.)

Two blank faces stared back at him.

"You don't believe me..do you?" he offered meekly. "I..The truth is.." he gulped, staring at the two still figures in front of him. "I can explain."

Tsuna looked up nervously and gave the two figures a awkward smile. The kind of smile one would give to a menacing dog who seemed to be contemplating whether he should bite your head off or not. Yeah..not exactly welcoming.

Onyx eyes glared at him, continuing to drill holes into him as he could only stiffen. He could see it in their eyes, the two were demanding answers from him in their own ways. He had gotten the two kids to listen to him some how. Hibari was now leaning against the tree, a sharp gleam of interest in his eyes while Hana stood as well, hands on her hips with narrowed eyes.

"Flames. You can summon flames from your hands." the dark brunette just deadpanned blankly.

Tsuna cringed underneath her dark glare.

"Sorry.." he apologized, genuine guilt seeping into him. Tsuna could tell that she felt a little bit betrayed, and it stung since he didn't want to lie to her. "...I just thought that it should be kept a secret."

"When?"

When? When was he going to tell them or when did he found out about them? Which question was he supposed to answer?

"I..found out about them only a few weeks ago." Not exactly a lie even though it wasn't the complete truth.

"Herbivore." this time it was Hibari who spoke. "How." his onyx eyes seemed to shine a bit in excitement.

"Hiiee?! Eh-um…" What was he supposed to say? If he taught the skylark how to control the flames, he would be stronger..but..a Hibari with access to flames so early on did not sound pleasant. At all. He could already see the piles of unconscious and beaten bodies growing. "There is this feeling and um..."

"Hn. You will show me. Tomorrow."

"Eh?!"

"Rooftop. Do not be late." and then he disappeared.

_..Wasn't the rooftop non accessible? What happened to the rules?_ Tsuna thought, sobbing inwardly. Come to think of it..Hibari always bended to rules to suit him...Unfair!

"Sawada."

The brunet blinked in surprise, suddenly remembering that Hana was still there.

"Y-yes?"

"Do those flames..hurt you?"

"No?"

"Does anyone else know?" onyx eyes stared at him seriously.

"No..only you two so far."

"Good. You shouldn't let anyone else know. Who knows what the monkeys will do to you?" she paused, looking thoughtful for a moment. "...We should probably tell Kyoko."

"Eh? Kyoko?! There's no way I-"

"She wouldn't want you to be keeping secrets from her."

It was true that Kyoko would be upset, but if they knew about the flames-they might also find out about the Mafia. And that was too risky and could endanger them. It was already bad enough that Hana found out, but now he had to tell Kyoko too? Tsuna did plan to tell his friends about his flames and the mafia, but he was waiting for the right time! Not when they were only _7_.

"But...this might be dangerous." he admitted, biting his bottom lip. _Not might, it will be._ He cursed at the fear coating his words, and tried to push the sinking feeling aside.

"Exactly. If something happens, we will help you."

He blinked in surprise. They..would help him? (Not that he thought two 7 year old girls would help much against the mafia, but it's the thought that counts.) His lips curled into a small smile, feeling his heart warm and worries disappear.

"..Thank you."

* * *

...And now they're back. So much for them disappearing.

"Are you sure I have to?" The brunet gulped, fidgeting.

"..You said you would. Now man up!" Hana barked, pushing him.

"I-I never said that!" he sputtered, allowing the dark brunette to push him forward and nearer to the nice looking house. "I only said 'thank you'!"

Hana fought the urge to roll her eyes and just continued to shove him. He glanced at her uncertainly, pouting. "Alright..."

Tsuna tentatively knocked on the door, squirming and wringing his hands. How was Kyoko going to react? Scratch that. He was going to show her that he could literally summon flames from thin air. Of course her reaction would not be good.

The door opened and Kyoko looked surprised yet clearly pleased to see both Tsuna and Hana.

"Tsuna-kun? Hana-chan?"

The brunet gave the ginger a tense smile and Kyoko knew right away that something was wrong. She was pretty good at reading people after all, and Tsuna's smiles were usually the brightest. Nothing like it was now, it was strained.

"We need to talk."

"Oh…" She wasn't sure what to say, and simply moved to the side to allow entrance. "Feel free to come in!"

"Are your...parents home?" he questioned hesitantly, making Kyoko falter and scrunch her brows for a moment before giving him her usual bright smile. "Yes, they're home."

"Then that's not good. Lets go to my house. Mum isn't home."

Kyoko gave Tsuna a curious look, but simply smiled at him and nodded. It didn't matter how suspicious he sounded, she knew she could always trust Tsuna. He was her best friend after all, and he must've had a good reason. He always did.

* * *

Beautiful orange flames swirled on his palms, dancing and flickering and Kyoko could only stare at them in amazement. They were mesmerizing and bright, the flames felt the same as Tsuna, full of warmth and secureness. She felt no maliciousness from it, no threat even when they clearly looked real. She reached out to touch them and she could see that Tsuna stiffened for a moment before relaxing. The flames were warm and the heat curled underneath her fingers, as if it glided softly on her skin. It felt quite ticklish.

Kyoko removed her hand from the flames and looked carefully at Tsuna's face. He looked tense and a bit fearful and her eyes softened at the sight.

"So that's what you wanted to show me…"

Tsuna gave her a mute nod and Kyoko shifted her gaze to Hana.

"Hana-chan found out?"

Tsuna made a strangled sound at her accurate guess and flushed while Hana just smirked.

"Of course. He thought he could get away with it by keeping it from us. I had to drag him to you since he was so wimpy about it."

Kyoko giggled good naturedly, looking at Tsuna again. "Tsuna-kun. Don't be afraid. I think your flames are beautiful."

Tsuna gawked at her. How could she be so calm about it?! "But it's not normal!" If he knew she was going to react this way, then maybe he should have told her earlier. A lot earlier, but that was too late seeing that he was already dead in that world. Bummer.

She tilted her head curiously. "Hm? But it's a part of you right? Why should I care?" she paused for a moment. "More importantly..do you..think I can do that too?"

Tsuna sputtered something incoherent while Hana scowled. "Don't be silly Kyoko, obviously not. Only he can do it."

Kyoko pouted. "You don't know until you try, Hana-chan." The ginger turned back to Tsuna. "So, Tsuna-kun- how do you do it?" The brunet gave her a look of disbelief and tried to think about how Reborn had managed to coax them out. Well, not coax per say- something along the lines of dragging them out (crying and screaming). He paled, he didn't want to force Kyoko to do brutal training (especially since she probably doesn't have any), but he didn't have magical bullets like Reborn. What else? He ran through all his memories (as foggy as they may be) and remembered a key point.

"Resolution."

Kyoko blinked. "Eh?"

"You have to concentrate and have a strong resolution to do something. Mine is..to protect my important people.." his face hardened and his eyes flickered to an orange colour. "I will never allow anyone to get hurt." _Again_. He would never allow it to happen again.

Both Hana and Kyoko sat completely still, attention caught by his firm resolve and strong eyes. Kyoko snapped out of it first and rewarded the brunet with a soft smile. "Then mine will be the same. To keep all my friends safe so we can all stay together. You try too, Hana."

The dark brunette frowned. "There is no way it will work."

Kyoko shrugged and simply closed her eyes, concentrating with both her palms out, as if she was cradling something. There was nothing at first, but a puff of indigo could be seen before it sputtered and faded away. Kyoko blinked, pouting. "That was too quick and small."

Hana could only gape while Tsuna looked on in total disbelief, and it wasn't even the fact that she could actually summon them. _Indigo flames? _The same flames as Mukuro?!

Oh hell.

_Sweet innocent Kyoko had the same flames as Mukuro?!_

Tsuna swerved his head towards Hana, hoping that she didn't have mist flames as well. "Hana, please try!"

Hana glowered at him before sighing. She allowed her palm to face forward before staring at it intently as if her hand would abruptly burst into flames. Now Hana knew that she wasn't as sweet or caring as Kyoko or Tsuna. Though Tsuna saw himself as weak, he was actually very strong. His _spirit_ was strong. She knew that he cared a lot, and his kindness just seemed endless. He just had something in him that attracted others, he was persistent, annoying at times but he was amazing and she would never ever exchange him for _anything_. Hell- he was one of the best things that happened to her! She was never bored any more, and not even a bit lonely. And Kyoko...she was like the sun with her bright hair and smiles. Sometimes Hana swore that Tsuna and Kyoko were twins. They were just so alike. She was kind, understanding and patient. She was sweet, gentle and actually quite mischievous (something that rarely anyone knew). Kyoko was her second friend, and she knew her moods and feelings. She was great at reading people and comforting others. Both were amazing friends, and Hana did not want to disappoint them.

Even if they were asking her to summon odd colored flames from her palms.

One minute went by.

Then two.

After three minutes of staring, Tsuna was starting to get nervous. Perhaps Hana couldn't? But a part of him felt that she_ could_. "Hana...maybe-"

"Not yet!" she hissed in annoyance before her palm suddenly burst into purple flames. She jumped at the sudden heat before it quickly died out.

There was absolute silence.

"...Perhaps being annoyed works too." Tsuna squeaked.

* * *

Tsuna eyed the unconscious bodies warily and sidestepped to avoid a hand as he continued to climb up the steps. Nope. He didn't see them. He would call the nurse and 'hint' it later. There were around 4 unconscious boys scattered on the steps and floor, both older and bigger then him. Maybe around 11 or 12? Tsuna wrinkled his nose, it was just like the skylark to 'bite them' to death. The brunet let out a puff of air, pouting at having to wake up so early. Yesterday had been quite busy with the revelation and all, but it wasn't until the next day did Tsuna realize that though Hibari gave him the place, he didn't give him the _time_!

So here he was, going to the rooftop bright and early. School hadn't actually started yet, though it was going to start soon. Tsuna had no doubt that Hibari would not be pleased to see him skipping or late for class, though it wasn't really his fault that the raven didn't tell him the time! He also doubted that he would be so understanding if he told him that. In fact, Hibari probably wouldn't bother to listen to him and his reasons at all (even though it wasn't his fault!). Finally reaching the top, the brunet tugged on the handle to find it unlocked. Well, that meant Hibari was here, he thought dryly.

The Elementary School rooftop wasn't really that different from the middle school one really, he noted. There was still the metal fence and white tiles, but there were a few wooden benches and flowers in blocks. _I should bring Kyoko and Hana here..the flowers are pretty._

Remembering that for later, the boy proceeded to look for the skylark.

Tsuna found him laid out on one of the benches, his tonfas to the side and an arm over his eyes..and he seemed to be..sleeping? The boy skittered around him, wondering if he should run before Hibari woke up and gave him a thrashing for just _being_ there. But then he might be mad for not being there on time. Urgh.

Choices, choices.

Finally he decided to just screw it all and just _wait_ for him (a few feet away) to wake up. Surely he wouldn't get in trouble for that? Then again, Hibari was always unreasonable...

The raven woke up 5 minutes later when a bird decided to land on the fence in a ruffle of feathers and chirps. The boy seemed to be a bit groggy before he snapped back into sharp attention as he spotted the brunet who was sitting on another bench.

"Little animal."

"Hm?"

"Flames." he demanded.

Tsuna blinked, scouring around to make sure no one was looking before allowing flames to pop up from his palms. "You can probably summon them..when you're irritated or annoyed, but focused on a certain task."

Hibari quirked a brow at the unusual requirements, but shrugged. He then proceeded to think about how herbivores pissed him off with their _crowding_, their loudness, their foolishness and everything else. His hands twitched as he wanted to give them a thrashing-

Purple flames bursted out of his hands in small puffs before disappearing. The skylark glowered at the puny flames, eyes twitching.

"...Just practice." Tsuna suggested weakly.

Onyx eyes gleamed contemplatively before he brought out his tonfas.

"Let's fight."

* * *

"You know.." Kyoko started, and Tsuna immediately knew (past crush or not) that he would not like what she was going to say.

He was right. He didn't.

"I think we should give our group a name."

"A name?" he echoed, nervously- hoping that he heard wrong. A name made it more official, but it also made it more eye-catching and more known. Tsuna definitely did not want to catch other people's attention. More attention meant more trouble.

"Yeah. A name would be cool right?"

"Hmm..a name would make this make-shift organization more professional." Hana agreed.

Kyoko beamed at her. "I was thinking, something along the lines of 'Rainbow' or something."

"R-rainbow?" Tsuna sputtered.

Hana rose a brow, but ignored the brunet. "Why rainbow?" She thought it was rather childish honestly.

"Ah, because of our flames! I have indigo ones, you have purple and Tsuna-kun has orange ones! We all have different colors and we can find more people with other different colors to make a rainbow!" she giggled.

"That makes sense I guess." the dark brunette conceded.

Tsuna made a choking sort of sound as they continued to talk. They wanted to spread the flames that usually represented the _Mafia_ around? They wanted more people to be able to just summon flames out of thin air?

Oh God. _It must be the influence of mist flammmeees. _

"Tsuna?"

The brunet blinked before looking up at the two girls who seemed to be waiting for him to say something.

"Uhh...that sounds good?"

The ginger beamed at him. "Alright! The we are now officially 'Niji'. Now let's make posters and stuff~"

Tsuna blanched. Now they were the Japanese version of the Acrobaleno.

Just wait until Reborn found out about _this_.

* * *

**Omake: Hibari**

The skylark had been laying on a branch when he noticed a certain spiky haired brunet lean against the trunk on the opposite tree. Hibari reflexively twitched since he recognized the particular herbivore. He had beat that one up not too long ago for violating many, _many_ rules _and_ offering him pineapples. Now that he thought about it..that punishment was too lenient wasn't it? Perhaps he should fix that. His eyes gleamed with a slight sadistic glee at the thought.

He _really_ hated pineapples.

Unfortunately, he paused midway in his action of getting ready to jump down and scare the herbivore when he saw a spark of orange. Were those? _Yes they were._

Onyx eyes widened before narrowing as he realized that the herbivore was indeed playing with fire! With a barely audible growl, he reached for his tonfas. Now that was another rule broken. Tonfa in hand, he was about to jump down and bite the brunet to death. But upon looking at the swirl of flames again, Hibari froze, realizing that the little animal had no matches or lighters...it literally came out from his palm. He sat still, staring at the orange flames, slightly awed. Now he may be Hibari Kyoya, but he was only 9 for goodness sake! It was totally justified to stare when someone could just summon orange flames and not get burned.

He didn't know how long he was there just staring before a shocked voice broke his concentration.

"What the...heck?!"

Ah..there was his cue.

With a blood thirsty smirk, he jumped off the tree.

Now this was going to be interesting.

* * *

_Being in the Mafia included many things. Tsuna didn't think that paper work came with the package._

_._

_._

_He was horribly wrong. _

* * *

**Thank you for the reviews! Thank you so much!**


	6. Doubts of the Heart

**Disclaimer**: Not mine derp.

**A/N:** So uh. Late. I have no excuses. Same as usual, if I messed up somewhere or you think it would have flowed better somewhere, feel free to tell me~ Not a lot of humor or fluff..slight angst cuz I've been reading too much angst DX Anyways, enjoy urgh. If you have any questions, ask. But wao, 240+ follows *sobs* THANKSSOMUCHHH

* * *

**Chapter 5**

At approximately 10 O'clock, a certain brunet practically leapt up from his bed after a realization hit him. Tsuna faintly wondered how could he have forgotten. It was no wonder it wasn't working! He groaned, rubbing his face with his hands. It was so important too! He massaged his temples before flopping back into bed, burying his head into his pillow- a single thought in his head.

"..They're gonna kill me.."

* * *

_Rings._

They were the key to summon flames, or some other sort of conductor would help too. Now that he thought about, Tsuna remembered someone saying that the rings were a conductor that allowed others to form their flames easier. No wonder they couldn't do it well. The past few weeks were spent rigorously attempting to summon bigger flames instead of those little puffs of heat and smoke. Hana and Kyoko were getting slightly annoyed by their lack of progress while Hibari was well- pissed for a lack of a better word. The sparring match after those flame training sessions were extremely painful.

_Well, at least he was getting better at dodging._

He shifted as he continued his walk to..well- no specific destination. He was too preoccupied with his thoughts to care though. _Where could he get special rings? _He truly didn't know how he was going to find the suitable conductors. His guardians used the Vongola rings but clearly they were not available. Even his special gloves were made from Leon. He sighed irritably, running his hands through his rumpled brown locks.

This was going to be a pain.

The brunet blinked as he felt something wet on his cheeks, a drip, then another. It was raining. Tsuna sighed, looking up, and then blinked in surprise as he focused his gaze on a shop. When the heck did he get here? The shop looked a little bit familiar though..Kakusareta. _Hidden. _What kind of store was named '_Hidden'? _It was pretty suspicious. He was snapped out of his thoughts as droplets of rain pelted down on him and he yelped at the sudden chill. The brunet pouted, trying to block the rain before resigning and rushing into the (highly suspicious) store. He hoped it wasn't some sort of shady store.

The inside was warm and comfortable, and Tsuna eyed the aligning shelves curiously. The store was filled with random trinkets and gadgets, ranging from old toys, clay pots, to little dressers. There was practically all sorts of stuff. He continued to go deeper into the store, glancing at all the different objects on the dark, wooden shelves. Wind chimes, potted plants, bracelets, little jade statues, ornaments of all kinds. It seemed as if the store had_ everything_. Despite the many items though, the store was oddly empty. Not even the owner seemed to be here.

"Looking for something?"

Tsuna jumped, spinning around quickly. He hadn't even noticed him! "Wha-" the brunet paused, mouth open as he stared at the figure in front of him in shock.

"Kawahira-san!"

The white haired-man gave him a bored look, a bowl of noodles in hand. "Why hello there, Vongola."

The brunet simply gawked at him- "You...how did you-"

The man eyed the boy curiously, shifting his glasses before slurping in more noodles. "Two souls in one body..no- it's a merge now." he noted.

"Wha-"

The man smiled, eyes crinkling. "Such a thing is easy for me to tell, Vongola." Tsuna didn't say any more, too busy being speechless at seeing him here. "Anyways, what brings you to my humble shop?"

"..Your shop? I thought you were a realtor."

"It was getting rather boring." he explained with a wave of his hand. "I thought opening a shop would be better."

"...I see." To be honest, Tsuna did not see at all. Why the heck would he open a shady shop?

"Now..what do you need?"

The brunet blinked, not understanding. "I...don't need anything."

Kawahira gave him a bland look. "Only those who need something notice this store, it's covered by a special illusion after all."

Tsuna flushed, feeling rather dumb at the moment. "Eh? Oh." So that was why he had never seen the store before. "Um..I was looking for some rings." he admitted.

"Rings?"

"Yeah, to make conducting flames easier. I-" he paused. "My friends will need them."

The silver haired man's lips quirked into a small smile. "Well, I suppose it's not right to keep you waiting." The brunet looked at him, brows furrowing, what did he mea-

Tsuna yelped as a box was suddenly thrown his way, and his hands fumbled with it, barely catching it. "Phew.." the boy glanced at the wooden box, a single metal clasp holding it shut. "What.."

"Your rings." The brunet blinked at the man in surprise, how did he get it so fast? Unless...he was waiting for him. "T-thank you...the price?" he questioned, cheeks warming.

Kawahira smiled once again, and only replied with a simple- "Free. As a repayment for my debt." He paused for a moment before tapping Tsuna's forehead with two fingers. "And...bottling it in will only do more harm." he added cryptically as an after thought.

"What debt? And-" And then he was alone, once again outside as the rain pelted down gently all around.

The shop was no longer there.

* * *

Tsuna only opened the box when he arrived at home, safe and sound- and had holed himself in his room with a lax sigh. He rubbed a towel against his dripping fluffy hair, vowing to take a shower right after. First he would check them out, he was quite curious about the rings after all. Would they have some sort of mark? Gently lifting the clasp, he blinked at what he found, frowning. No, it wasn't the rings that were the problem. They were beautifully crafted, with simple semi-thick sliver bands that had some markings carved onto it (each had different markings, some resembled clouds, rain and etc) and flat coloured orbs (with the respective guardian colours) that seemed to be made of some sort of glass or crystal. It seemed to sparkle and shine when it was shifted. But that wasn't the problem, the problem was the _amount_ of rings.

Instead of the three rings he was expecting- there were_ two..four..six_. Six rings. Storm, sun, lightning, rain, cloud and mist. He had been expecting two cloud rings (for Hana and Hibari) and one mist ring (for Kyoko). But now that he thought about it, he hadn't really told the man what rings he wanted. There was only one ring of each type, so that meant that Hibari wouldn't be able to get one. He frowned, biting the bottom of his lip. In a way, it did make sense for the skylark not to get one since his ring was the Vongola Cloud ring, but that wouldn't stop Hibari from biting him to death (he would not be pleased). Tsuna groaned, grabbing a ring and studying it, turning it around, when something glinted and caught his attention.

The boy blinked, before staring at it. It was some sort of engraving...Upon seeing it, Tsuna inwardly sobbed. He didn't ask for this! Now he was just being mean! The brunet placed the ring onto the table gently, before running to the bathroom. Time to go dunk his head into a bucket, it would be better then slamming his head against the wall.

On the table, the light bounced off the ring- reflecting four simple letters that were neatly engraved in the inside of the band.

'_Niji_'.

* * *

"...So this is supposed to help." Hana muttered, eyeing the ring carefully. "Are you sure? It looks like some cheap toy ring." It was a pretty nice ring, Hana had to admit. The orb was a nice shade of purple and the carvings on the silver band were elegant. Like clouds drifting in the wind.

The brunet nodded, he had given the ring to Hana first since he saw her first, but he would hand the mist ring to Kyoko later. She was out doing something. "It does seem a bit childish, but it's definitely not some cheap toy." Well..it was technically cheap since it was_ free_. But it definitely wasn't a toy! Or at least he didn't think it was. She glanced at the ring again and blinked, noticing something.

Her lips quirked into a smile as she lazily waved the ring around. "And I thought you didn't like the group name."

Tsuna gave her a bland look, cheeks warming. "..I don't."

"Hmm..whatever you say." Satisfied with what she saw, she slid the ring onto her finger, only to find it loose. "It's too bi-" The ring throbbed- and then shrunk, sitting on her finger snugly. Her eyebrows rose in disbelief. "What the heck?"

Tsuna rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly. "Magic?" he suggested, which earned him a scowl. "Just concentrate and try to form the flames. You'll understand then."

The brunette frowned, but listened to him any ways. Tsuna didn't lie after all. She concentrated, thinking the same thoughts she always did when she was practising. The ring erupted with purple flames and she sucked in a gasp, her eyes widening. It was a whole lot easier with the ring.

Tsuna simply grinned.

* * *

"It's a really pretty ring!" Kyoko smiled, amber eyes shining. The indigo orb glinted prettily in the light and she couldn't help but marvel at the delicate carvings. They were some kind of swirls that resembled wind, but the ginger felt it was more like mist. "And it will help with our flames?"

Tsuna nodded, happy that she was taking the news so well. He tilted his head towards Hana- who sighed and showed the ginger how her flames just bursted from the ring on her finger. Kyoko blinked in amazement, before sliding the ring into her finger- and just like Hana's, it resized to fit her finger nicely. "Woah! This is really cool!" she giggled.

Hana nodded reluctantly. "It is. The engraving was a nice touch too." she admitted.

Tsuna inwardly shrunk back while Kyoko tilted her head in question. "Engraving?"

"It says 'niji' on the inside." Kyoko practically jumped up in excitement at that, and Tsuna found it rather strange now. When did she become so excitable? She was always calm, polite, and happy like the sun. She was like a flower...Tsuna's eyes widened as he saw an older Kyoko, smiling and giggling. He blinked, and the image was gone- only leaving the little Kyoko, jumping with joy. Tsuna felt something cold wash over him, his chest constricting. It seemed that both girls noticed his discomfort as they were looking at him now, all trace of happiness gone- a worried look splashed on both their faces.

"What's wrong, Tsuna?" Kyoko asked, and Tsuna couldn't help but wonder when did she start call him 'Tsuna' instead of 'Tsuna-kun'.

He hid a grimace and gave them both bright smiles. "It's nothing, just feeling a bit tired." As much as he hated lying, Tsuna was a pretty good liar when it really mattered.

When it was for the sake of his friends.

Hana narrowed her dark eyes, not convinced. Tsuna simply continued to smile, staring right into her eyes. She looked away after a few moments, agitated as she flipped her hair back. And Kyoko...Kyoko had a weird expression on her face, one Tsuna couldn't identify oddly. Her brows were drawn together, so she looked worried- but there was something else in her eyes.

"Hana-chan, lets go and leave Tsuna-kun for a while so he could rest, okay?" Tsuna felt slightly comforted by the fact that she returned back to using 'kun', and he felt his heart lighten, as if a burden was taken away. Hana glanced at him, and then back at the ginger before nodding slowly. "Alright." Even if she didn't like it, she could be patient when she needed to do.

"Sorry you guys.." he apologized, looking at the pillow on his bed, disinterestedly. "Maybe some sleep will help." He didn't sound like he believed it at all.

Both Kyoko and Hana didn't believe it for a second either.

* * *

Sawada Tsunayoshi, the 7 but almost 8 year old boy who had 2 friends, and 1 semi-friend.

Sawada Tsunayoshi, the 26 year old (29 if you count his recent years) Mafia boss who died protecting those who he loved.

Which was he?

Tsuna tightened his grip around his pillow, burrowing his head into it. It was as if cold water had been dumped on him, the sinking realization made him want to cry. He always did wonder why he didn't try to befriend Takeshi, no- _Yamamoto_. (He wasn't Takeshi, not anymore.) Why he didn't seek out Hayato or Lambo in Italy. Why he didn't bother to go look for any of his guardians. Why he had befriended Kyoko and Hana instead of his past friends.

He was scared.

That little boy who was in his class and loved baseball? That wasn't Takeshi. He wasn't the super tall boy lugging a sword around. And Tsuna was pretty sure that Hayato wouldn't be Hayato either. And Hibari? He remained unchanged, always neutral, impulsive, rash. Tsuna had no doubt that if he was not forced into such circumstances, the brunet would've avoided him like the plague as well (if only not to get beat up). But the skylark was practically the same. Perhaps that was why he hadn't freaked out when Tsuna met him. He still had his tonfas, his voice was different and he was a lot younger, but he was the same. The skylark was his constant.

But recently...Whenever Hibari gave Tsuna a annoyed but not unkind look, a light hit as if he was reprimanding him- or hell, hang around him_ willingly _(rare)-Tsuna would inwardly cringe. It was wrong. All wrong. Hibari was supposed to be the ruthless Cloud who only helped when his family was in need.

And as for Hana and Kyoko, a small part him knew why he had chosen to befriend them first. Hana, the girl who was part of his family through Ryohei, he didn't know much about her. She was always snarky and sarcastic, and she remained unchanged for the most part, just a bit more gentler and smiled a bit more. And Kyoko? She was his sun, she smiled a lot and was always just so_ kind_. She called him '_Tsuna-kun_'. But here, the ginger seemed more happy, which made Tsuna glad- but she was also more excitable and perhaps even mischievous at times?

They weren't the same as before and it made him so, so afraid. Their images just seemed to overlap and they _changed_. He had managed to bury these thoughts in the deepest pits of his mind, but they were yet again dug up painfully, or rather- they exploded.

But the worse thing was his own selfishness. He viewed these..kids (because thats what they were) as his past friends, Tsuna thought that he knew their habits, and expected these younger ones to be the same. He forced his views onto them, he had tried to match up what he thought he knew of their future selves to their current selves. It was selfish of him to do so, but he couldn't help it. He could only see their future selves inside of them.

And the thing he was most terrified over was reliving his life over. The battle with Mukuro, the battle with the Varia, Byakuran, Enma, all these different battles. How could he relive this life if he knew what was going to happen? How could he let his friends get hurt when he could possibly prevent it? Let Mukuro be locked in Vindice? He had avoided thinking about his plans for the future, and how to avoid the events because he didn't know what to do. What he _should_ do. What would be right?

He had died vowing that if he another chance, he would change _everything._

Knowing the future was a burden on his shoulders, and not for the first time- Tsuna hated the situation.

* * *

Sunday morning came and Tsuna woke up groggily, still taxed from yesterday's thoughts. He allowed himself to slide of the warm bed- and headed for the bathroom. Tsuna was feeling slightly better, but his dark thoughts were still in the back of his head, a easily reachable place.

He greeted his mother somewhat warmly, glad that at least she hadn't changed. He ate breakfast like normal and left the house. He had to think, and he had a feeling that Hana and Kyoko would come to visit him. He wasn't_ avoiding_ them per say, he..he just wanted some time to think, to clear away his muddled thoughts. It wasn't fair after all. He shouldn't be viewing them like their past selves, they were_ different_. Weren't they?

Tsuna sighs, and then blinks at a passing figure, eyes wide. "Hibari-san?"

The boy in turn glowers at the brunet, looking rather sullen. He's pouting, Tsuna thinks as he sees the raven stop to glare at him. It was true that Hibari was pretty much the same as...future Hibari, but his glares were certainly more..cuter? He still had a slight baby ace, so he looked semi-harmless. Except for the glare of course. The glare was the thing that scared others away, normal children usually didn't glare like him.

The brunet absently noted that he was not carrying his tonfas. Not that that would mean anything of course, he could have been magically hiding it in his clothes like usual. The brunet always did wonder where he hid them though...

"Hn." Ah- another thing Tsuna had to work on. The skylark's communication skills were well..not going to change any time soon, so Tsuna really should start trying to understand his grunts. And his growls. And his expressions. Might as well add in his glares too. He never had the time before, Hibari was always too busy crushing other families and biting them to death.

Tsuna thought that the raven had many different type of glares, the 'How-dare-you-I-will-end-you' glare, the 'You're-annoying' glare, the 'I-can't-believe-I-know-you' glare, and lastly, the 'Death/Evil' glare. Tsuna thought that he was rather proficient at reading glares.

"..Why do you talk with grunts and glares?" he asked curiously. Tsuna didn't know what made him ask the question, perhaps he just wanted to know. Perhaps he just wanted the skylark to wail on him, the brunet felt like a good beating might be needed to clear his head.

Huh.

Wanting to get beat up. Well that was new.

The skylark glowered at him.

"You're just proving my point." he pointed out.

He switched to his death glare.

Wow. (Chibi or not) Apparently years of seeing the death glare did not provide immunity. Tsuna hid a grimace. "...well then. How are you?"

A scowl.

"Say something?"

"Hn."

Tsuna facepalmed. " I give up."

A blank look.

"Herbivore."

"Hm?" Tsuna glanced up, wondering if the raven was finally going to say something.

"..I will bite you to death."

Ah. The wonders of speech.

* * *

Tsuna arrived home, nursing several bruises and regretting everything. That beating did not clear his head. In fact, IT MADE IT WORSE. Hibari had beaten him with a STICK because he did not have his tonfas. A freakin stick! Seeing the raven beat him with a_ stick_ of all things was hilarious, and he had erupted in laughter-which made the skylark even madder.

The boy sometimes wondered if his lack of preservation was because of Reborn. He shook the thought away, he didn't want to open_ that_ can of worms. He could wait until his tutor actually came first.

"I'm home."

"Welcome home, Tsu-kun!" his mother greeted cheerfully before coming out of the kitchen. Nana blinked, eyeing the bruises before smiling. "Training with Hibari-kun again?" Training, that was what he told his mother- and it really wasn't a lie. It was a training of sorts. "Come on, I'll put some ointment on them."

He nodded, trailing after her. Tsuna entered the kitchen, plopping down on a chair. Nana began to clean his wounds and silence fell upon them. The brunette glanced up at her son, and was greeted with a rather spacy look. His chocolate brown eyes seemed to be drifting somewhere else, dark and dazed. His hair only seemed to make the scene more somber, covering parts of his eyes.

"..What's wrong Tsu-kun? You have been acting weird lately." she said softly, brown orbs concentrating on the brunet's wounds. "Hana and Kyoko-chan came by you know..they left when you weren't here."

Tsuna gulped silently, looking away. "I.." he choked. What could he say? He felt so frustrated with himself, and so guilty! He wanted to tell the truth, if only to let go of the burden that weighed down his heart. He wanted to tell her that he wasn't his 'Tsu-kun' that he was actually a 26 year old man. That he couldn't handle talking to his best friends because he was a coward. He had so much to tell, but he didn't tell her any of it. "It's..nothing."

Nana paused in her work, glancing up at him with soft eyes. "Sometimes..it feels like you're a lot older, helping me with dishes, buying groceries for me. Other kids are outside playing..free. You don't have to."

"But I want-"

"Shhh.." She looked down again as she continued. "You already help out a lot Tsu-kun. I want you to be happy. You can tell me anything, you know. Tsu-kun, you're only 7, don't keep everything inside. Depend on me...even if it seems like I'm useless, I'm still your mother."

The brunet was speechless, never had his mother ever said anything like that. She was always smiling, he didn't remember a time where she was so serious. And she thought she was useless? Guilt gnawed at him, And..her words hit him right in the heart, and suddenly, all he wanted to do was to curl up by her side and tell her everything. But he couldn't...could he?

"Okaa-san, you're not useless! It's just..I..well.." he struggled to find the right words. "I have a friend, But I haven't seen him for a while. He's..very different from before...He isn't the friend I had before. I thought to myself that 'I didn't know this person.'"

Nana blinked and then looked at him again, smiling as she swept his bangs to the side. "Tsu-kun, you're so silly."

Tsuna frowned as his brows twisted in confusion. What? Was his problem really silly?

The brunette sighed, wrapping slender arms around her only son as she pulled him into her lap. She noted that though the brunet was smaller than most boys, he was almost too big for her lap now. Her son was growing up...she felt her eyes water at this. "Tsu-kun, you know- no one ever knows a person totally inside and out, people change- of course they're different." Nana felt her son stiffen at this and she allowed her hands to rub circles around his back. Under her ministrations, she felt him relax again as he rested his head on her shoulder.

She continued. "It only means that they're showing a new side to you that you haven't seen before. So..it's okay. You'll learn even more things about him and get even closer." she whispered, patting his head as he nuzzled her neck, seeking comfort.

Tsuna was silent, completely still as his mother soothed him with her words and ministrations. Her words were bouncing in his head, erasing his doubts and he finally felt light again. And as he closed his eyes-allowing sleep to come to them- he accepted them.

That night, he dreamt of rainbows, his mother and her amazing pastries, Kyoko, Hana, his beloved famiglia and Reborn, who was looking at him like he was an idiot.

Unsurprisingly, Tsuna didn't mind.

* * *

Kyoko didn't know what to do.

Her friend was hurting and she didn't know what to do!

It pained her so much that she couldn't help, the ginger was always the one to put bandages on him. Physical wounds she could help with, but mental ones? She was at a complete loss.

She wasn't sure if Hana had saw it, but she did. It was a split second, but she had saw it.

He had look disoriented and dazed at first, before his eye showed pure, unadulterated, fear. He had looked so terrified and she could feel him draw back, backpedaling so quickly. She could feel him distancing from her. But what could she do? She only smiled, and she doubted that that would help. She stifled a moan by burying her head into her pillow, wishing she could make him feel better.

"Kyoko?"

The ginger blinked, lifting her head up from the pillow. A figure stood by her door, white silverish hair gleaming.

"..Onii-san?"

The boy grunted, trudging into her room and flopping onto the floor. "What's wrong?" Her lips quivered weakly as she debated about unloading her problems on her older brother. He could be silly sometimes, but he was strong and always there for her. He was the best brother she could ever ask for.

"My friend is sad." Kyoko inwardly berated herself on how dumb the sentence sounded.

She could see his brows twist in confusion, "Which one?"

Though Ryohei had never actually met his little sister's best friends, she had talked about them quite a lot. Tsuna-kun with his bright eyes and cheerful smiles, a bit shy and clumsy. Hana-chan with her sharp glares but protective nature, intelligent and blunt. Kyoko was a lot happier with them, and Ryohei was relieved to see his sister making new friends.

"...Tsuna..kun." she added the last bit as an afterthought. It felt...kinda wrong, truthfully. Shouldn't she call him Tsuna-kun? But a part of her wanted to call the brunet Tsuna. Just Tsuna. They were friends weren't they?

Ryohei smiled, jumping up in excitement. "Your care for him is to the extreme!" he exclaimed, nodding sagely, "All you have to do is be there for him Kyoko!"

Kyoko blinked, not surprised at her brother's usual antics and wording, but baffled all the same. "Be there for him?"

The boy nodded eagerly, "He'll know that you will always be with him that way. If he needs to talk, you'll be there to listen to the extreme!"

Kyoko bit her lip in thought. Would that help? She gave her brother a small smile before nodding.

She was patient, she could wait for him.

* * *

Hana and Kyoko are greeted warmly by Tsuna the next day, to their utmost surprise. Tsuna doesn't look troubled or sad, and Kyoko feels so, so relieved. He apologizes about before and smiles his usual warm smile and only then do the girls relax. Hana and Kyoko simply shared a look, exchanging silent words.

_Never again._

Hana nods, seemingly understanding Kyoko's silent message. Never again, will they allow him to wallow in sadness or be troubled. They would not be so useless and confused on what to do next time.

_Next time, they would be ready._

* * *

_From gun wielding babies to rainbow colored flames, it's a wonder how Tsuna could have possibly thought that he could have died normally. _

* * *

**Thank you for the reviews! I really do appreciate them, sorry if I don't respond at times. I just forget otl. If you have any questions, I suggest you pm me? Sorry that no new characters pop up. Need to make Tsuna think about the future a bit. **


	7. Officially Official

**Author's Note:** UMMMMM. *sweats* It's been like uh..forever. And I'm really sorry! I have no other excuses besides: LIFE. I'm not really sure about this chapter, but I hope you guys will like it? Im actually kind of scared hahaa... If anything is wrong or any character is out of character, feel free to tell me. I apologize for the slow speed of the story, they're gonna take a few more chapters to grow. I can't wait to write about Reborn though 3 Next chapter will have some more..resolution~ Oh! And I do appreciate all the reviews! Thank you so much for the faves as well! *q* 248 faves and 346 follows hnngg.

**Questions you may have: **

**What are the pairings?  
**Sorry, but there are no pairings in this fan fiction. (Or at least at this moment.) This will (hopefully) be a GEN fanfic. I'm really sorry about it! I know some of you guys wanted pairings, but um. Romance is something I have to work on.

**Will Varia appear?  
**Yes! They will most likely appear (in the near future of course). Most of the characters will show, but um- it's kinda hard for me to write when there are like, lots of characters in one scene hahaa..

**What path will Tsuna follow? (Change future, or keep it the same?)  
**So uh, I have some of you guys asking me this, and I'm really sorry that it's not clear DX. In my personal opinion, Tsuna is a wishy washy person at times, he has trouble deciding things- but when he finally decides on something-it's final, and he will fulfill it with his dying will. Right now he is clear that things are different, but he's still..kind of stuck in the mentality that he can't change things. (The big things at least.) He'll decide when it really matters, which shouldn't take long. (Next chapter)

**The Niji letterings:  
**Erk..so I've had some questions regarding this and I'm so sorry! I uh, actually thought of it with English character's first, but now I realize that it doesn't make much sense. So um, I'm probably gonna change that soon- it'll either be in latin or Kanji.

**Rings:  
**Will add more about it later, Tsuna might be going to Kawahira again. Who knows? :3

* * *

**Chapter 6**

Fate.(/fāt/) The development of events beyond a person's control, regarded as something determined by a supernatural power.

Tsuna didn't know whether to love or hate fate.

It was fate that made him the boss of one of the biggest Mafia groups. It was fate that he met Reborn (or at least he thought it was, no matter how silly he sounded). It was also fate that stuck a 'Kick me, I'm clearly a very weak victim and softie who will not retaliate' note on his back and dubbed him..'Dame-Tsuna'.

"Oi! Dame-Tsuna! What are you doing just standing there? Get away from the door!"

Yep. He really, _really_ hated fate. The brunet sighed, moving from the door and into the classroom. Tsuna glanced around wearily, depressed. He was finally in 2nd grade (now he only had-lets see...5 more years left)..and both of his friends weren't in the same class as him! Hana and Kyoko were in the same class together, and he was left with...Yamamato. Even after his mother had calmed him down, he still wasn't too sure what to do really. Tsuna had decided to just wait it out after a long time of thinking, he would let them become friends gradually by getting the taller boy to get to know him. So this time, Yamamoto wouldn't be pushed to be his friend after the experience on the roof top and his near suicide. But still..it was awkward.

Worse, he was- well...'gifted' with the same nickname he had in his past. 'Dame-Tsuna'. The brunet really didn't know how he got dubbed with the name again, admittedly- his scores were pretty bad (not his fault!), but it was a lot better than his past one's. At first he had some difficulty deciding whether he should actually do good in school or not, but something else had popped up to his dismay.

It started off when he had stumbled into a couple of Advanced Math textbooks, Tsuna had flipped through them, and to his absolute dismay, he did not understand a thing (well actually, he did recognize a few things, but it was all rather fuzzy). More like, he couldn't remember. When one was often fighting and doing paperwork, one's skill in math would undoubtedly go down. It also didn't help that his comprehension skills were more then a little lacking.

It was as if something had blocked him.

He had realized something as the teacher talked in the beginning of the year. He didn't _understand_. More like- _he couldn't_, some parts of his brain were still a child's, so he had difficulty understanding the lessons. He had the intelligence (in academics) of an 8 year old Tsuna….Which was way below level since he was always pretty slow. It certainly did not help that he spaced out in class, thinking of his guardians. So yeahhh...he regressed. It was pretty embarrassing and shameful that a 26-year old man couldn't understand such simple lessons. Luckily, he still remembered all the basics for math, and his language skills were still as good as before. He dreaded going to middle school and high school again, he would surely be struggling then.

Seeing how he was already disadvantaged, Tsuna decided to just give in and not worry about it too much. He wasn't doing _that_ bad. Besides, Reborn was his home tutor for a reason after all. He was hired because of Tsuna's abysmal grades, it would be weird to have a tutor when you were doing great in school.

And the other reason of the nickname was his friends. Hana and Kyoko were getting quite popular, even if they were only 8. A lot of the kids just didn't understand why they hung out with him, a rather clumsy and scrawny boy with bad grades. So they decided to do what any petty 8-year old would do..which was to pick and make fun of him.

Truthfully, the nickname didn't hurt him at all, he no longer cared about what other people thought of him. (Actually, he never really cared before either- as long as his family believed he wasn't 'dame', then everything was fine.) The only people's opinions he cared about were from his friends and family. But still, it was pretty annoying and depressing that he would be dubbed as 'Dame-Tsuna' again. His mom would feel disappointed if she found out, and his friends? They might get angry, and an angry Hana was not a good thing.

Nevertheless, a new school year was starting, and Tsuna hoped it was as good as the last one.

* * *

Hibari was at his door way.

The brunet blinked, rubbing his eyes groggily.

Nope. Still there. Hibari was at his doorway. The doorway of his _bedroom_. Staring.

He blankly wondered if the skylark knew that this was considered breaking and entering.

Now everyone knew that when the skylark was waiting for someone, it was bad news. And that was why Tsuna was currently calculating his escape. His best bet was escaping through the window. Surely he could risk a few broken bones? He _was_ a Mafia boss after all. Sure Hana would probably rip him a new one, but he had a good reason right? Righttt?

In the end, Tsuna decided to just stay in bed. A waiting skylark was bad, but being hunted down by one was way, _way_ worse. And bloodier. (Unless the skylark was waiting to thrash you of course, it would be around the same amount of blood then. A lot.)

The brunet yanked on his blankets and curled them around his body tighter, as some sort of defense. Not that the thin layer of blankets would stop Hibari, but hey- everything counted.

"Hi.."

Hibari tilted his head considerately, eyeing the pajamas the boy wore. Orange with brown tuna fishes all around. Very herbivore-ish. "Hn."

"Is there something you need?" Tsuna glanced at the clock beside him, startled at the time. "..At 7:27 in the morning?" It was a weekend day too. The brunet knew that he wouldn't be able to go back to sleep, which sucked.

"My parents want to meet you." he grunted, pausing for a moment before wrinkling his nose in distaste. "..About Niji. Today, at 11." Then he proceeded to turn around and walk right out.

Tsuna could only stare blankly at his back, wondering what he did that landed him in a meeting with Hibari's parents.

* * *

"Sawada. Sawada!"

The brunet blinked, snapping out of his thoughts. "Eh? Did you say something?"

Hana narrowed her eyes, slightly puzzled at his lack of attention, but then again, he was always a space case- so she shrugged it off. "I said, we have two more requests for Niji, are we doing them today?"

Tsuna chuckled sheepishly, tilting his head. Since Hana and Kyoko had volunteered to help, Hana decided to take care of the organization. She would be the one to get the details of each job, and hammer down an agreement for costs. She was like a secretary, reminding Tsuna of jobs that he had to do, and those that could be done later. Kyoko was in charge of advertisements, making cute little banners and flyers and posting them wherever. He had been adamant on splitting the pay between the three of them despite Hana and Kyoko's protests. "Sorry, I have something to do today."

"Helping out Nana-san?" Kyoko questioned with a tilt of her head. Tsuna, to her dismay- did not talk to anyone but Hana, Kyoko and his mother. She silently berated herself for being slightly _happy_ about him having only a few friends. She supposed it was selfish, but others didn't appreciate the brunet properly, and this way meant their was more of the brunet to go around! (But if Tsuna ever found good friends who actually cared, she would support it 100%.) Kyoko didn't think Tsuna knew exactly how amazing he was, and it frustrated her.

He flopped down on his bed with a huff. Since Niji didn't have an actual meeting spot, the meetings were usually held at his house, in his room. Tsuna was actually thinking about holding some meetings in Hana and Kyoko's house as well. That way they had multiple meeting spots, whichever was closest first.

"I have to go to Hibari-san's place and meet his parents." Tsuna had a vague feeling about what the meeting was about, it was probably about how Niji wasn't an official or authorized business, he would probably get in trouble- and he was not looking forward to it.

Tsuna noted on how Hana's eyes sharpened. She always was pretty smart. "About?"

The brunet sighed, pouting as he gave her the information. "..About Niji." He had a sinking feeling that he knew where this was going.

"We're going."

"No," he hissed, before she could finish her sentence.

"Tsuna-kun!" Kyoko huffed, reproaching him. "We're also in Niji, but if you won't bring us, then you don't think we're in this together." Her amber eyes shined as she pleaded/accused (with) him. "Don't you trust us?" Ah. There it was. The four words that made him want to crawl somewhere and curl up. He _hated _it when he was accused of this. Why and how did she find his weak spot? Trust was a big thing to him, and Tsuna trusted_ all_ of his friends and family. He could only hope that they trusted him too.

Tsuna gulped, stiffening as he shot a dark glare to Hana who was smiling smugly. "You brainwashed her with your wordy ways!" he playfully accused, scowling. Or was it the mist flames? Mukuro _was_ always manipulative douche who happened to also be good at twisting words...

Hana smirked. "Don't forget the teary eyes, they're pretty good ways to manipulate someone." She paused for a moment before smiling. "Besides, we're a lot more diplomatic then you. You'd be stuttering a lot, and I highly doubt the skylark's parents will like that."

The brunet huffed indignantly. He was not a bad speaker! As a Mafia boss, stuttering would be bad, and he always spoke reasonably with a calm and collected voice. But here..he stuttered a lot due to the other part of him, who still felt shy and scared. The parent's being the Hibari's didn't help it either.

"Fine." he groused, a tiny part of him secretly happy that they were coming along. He pouted when he heard the light slapping sound that was a non discreet high-five between the two girls. When did they become so _devious_? Next thing you know, the two girls would somehow convince him to allow them to follow him into dangerous fights. He shuddered inwardly at the thought, now _that_ would have been messy.

"I'm sure everything will be fine, Tsuna-kun!" Kyoko chirps, eyes bright. "Besides, what could go wrong?"

Tsuna moaned, and faintly wondered if Kyoko knew that those were famous last words. (Which of course, does not calm him at all, especially since he can name multiple -more than 30- things that could go wrong.)

* * *

"Herbivore."

Hibari shot a glare at Tsuna and his..'extra additions'. The brunet smiled sheepishly at the skylark who was leaning against the entrance of his house. It was more like a mansion though.. The Hibari residence was slightly more isolated in Namimori, black front gates, traditional gardens and a mansion-like home. It was a truly impressive building."They're a part of Niji too," he explained. "I can't just leave them."

Hana narrowed her eyes at him, challenging him to say something while Kyoko simply smiled brightly.

"Hn." The skylark was dressed rather differently today..he was wearing a formal grey kimono, which made Tsuna feel just a tiny bit apprehensive since he was wearing his casual wear. _Whoops._ Maybe he should have worn a suit? Though an 8 year old wearing a suit wouldn't have appeared that formal any ways.. Hibari moved away from the entrance as the gates began to open. "Come."

The brunet admired the paintings of various things spread about, trees, birds and waterfalls were only some of the things painted. It was a very traditional house, he noted. _Just like his Cloud Guardian..._The floor was made of hard brown wood, the thin sliding doors had small pictures of greenery painted on it and the brunet could hear the trickling of water from the pond outside.

The walk wasn't exactly short, it wasn't long either- but Tsuna felt his head spin at the twists and turns. It was especially confusing since all the hallways practically looked the same. It was the first time Tsuna had ever entered the skylark's home, and he was slightly interested.

Finally, Hibari stopped in front of one of the sliding doors, one that was decorated by cherry blossoms. "W..wait." The brunet suddenly felt very nervous as his hands twitched, _ohgodhewasn'treadyforthis! _Tsuna squeezed his eyes shut, fighting against his other hesitant self as he squashed the thought. (He felt guilty for blocking out his younger self's panic, but he brushed that thought away.) He was _ready_, he could do this.

Hibari didn't stop, and Tsuna wasn't sure if the boy had heard his plea, but he could have sworn that the skylark had given him a quick glance before sliding the door open.

Nevertheless, Tsuna took in a deep breath, pasting a smile on his face while his eyes hardened with determination. Reborn had tutored him for a reason after all, and his Spartan tutor would _strangle_ him if he had forgotten diplomacy along with school stuff.

He was greeted with the scene of two adults, both dressed in neat kimonos sitting in front of a low table, drinking tea. Tsuna blinked at the pretty woman glancing up at them, and a man that could have passed off as Hibari's clone (older version of course). The brunet gave them a slight bow of his head before smiling brightly. "Hello, I heard you wished to speak to us about Niji?"

If the two adults were anyway surprised by his politeness or the extra additions, they didn't show it. "Hn." replied the man, which earned him an elbow from the woman who smiled before gesturing to the seats. "He meant 'yes', and please take a seat," she glanced at Hana and Kyoko who were still standing by the doorway before adding, "your friends too." Hibari was already seated next to his mother, looking as if he wanted to be anywhere but here. Tsuna realized he was sulking. The brunet also briefly wondered if Hibari's mother would mind teaching him Hibari-speak, clearly it would make his life a lot easier.

The two girls only followed when Tsuna pattered toward the cushion seats, flanking him. The brunet suddenly thought of Takeshi and Hayato, both flanking him always during meetings. It was all quite weird actually, his two Guardians were steadfastly loyal and unwavering, all his Guardians were actually; having two other people do the same thing as them was just..astounding? Surprising? Shocking? All of those words described it.

"Tsunayoshi-kun, you may call me Suzume," She gestured to her left, "and ignore him. He's just grouchy." Hibari continued to glower at the table, hoping for it to burst into flames so he could just get out of the room. Five. Five people! It didn't matter if two of them were his parents and three of them were tolerable. He _hated_ crowding.

The man sipped his tea, "Hibari Kuro."

"Sawada Tsunayoshi, Suzume-san, Kuro-san. Please call me Tsuna." He glanced at Hana who glanced at Kyoko. "Kurokawa Hana, co-leader of Niji."

"Sasagawa Kyoko, co-leader of Niji." The ginger gave them a smile, dipping her head.

"And so..."

* * *

Hibari Kuro did not know what to expect when he heard that a boy -one even younger then his own son- was running a business. He had read a report about the boy's business and how it was ran, the details astounded him. Kuro had first thought that the child was just doing some simple chores for some pocket change (that was hardly a 'business'). But this? This was different. It was an orderly business where one could make a request, and if it was doable, the boy would accept- charging an appropriate amount of money. There were even advertisements and it was getting quite well known. Honestly, Kuro would have left it alone- but all businesses in Namimori needed to be registered to the Hibari household properly (since they were Namimori's protectors, and there would no swindling going on), so he had to talk to the boy. Kuro grudgingly admitted that he was also quite curious about the unknown boy...But it was mostly because the boy broke a rule.

Another thing was Kyoya. The boy, Tsuna- was his name if he remembered correctly, could be be considered as his son's _friend. _His son who would rather sneer and 'biting others to death' instead of talking to them. (Granted, most of that was his own influence and didn't he regret it when he had to pay the bills and property damage? At his wife's insistence of course.) It was just downright strange, so of course his attention had been caught.

And now? Well, the child was a bit different then he expected. A short boy with fluffy chocolate brown hair and wide amber eyes walked into the room, a disarming smile on his face while two others followed in. He quirked a brow at the two additions, he didn't remember having more than one guest. But he allowed it, since the child clearly needed moral support.

Then the boy opened up his mouth and spoke, and he suddenly remembered the boy's bright and calm smile.

_..Or maybe not._

* * *

"I am very sorry for not telling you this earlier, I may have forgotten to notify you." The boy grinned sheepishly. "I hope you'll forgive me?" He blinked, amber eyes wide and earnest.

Hibari Kuro twitched. It seemed that the child was using his status as a 'child' to get away with it.

The girl with the orange hair decided to jump in, a friendly smile on her face. "We're really sorry! I didn't know we had to talk to you two about it, Hibari-san. Niji is a group that helps those who need it, for a certain price that is. The price varies, and sometime we're even paid with food or treats. Some of it actually goes to charities."

The brunette on the boy's right side removed a folder from her bag, and slid it onto the table. "Data that I collected before, on Niji's average earnings per week and month, as well as the prices. Some other important information is in there. Once again, we're sorry for the delay." Sharp eyes glittered as she waited for a response.

"All in all," the ginger continued, the same carefree smile on her face. "We're Niji, and the three of us are the Rainbow Squad!" She beamed, flowers dancing behind her.

Kuro could have sworn he heard the distinct sound of someone choking for a second before a heavy silence weighed on them all.

The brunet broke the silence with a somewhat calm looking smile. "Yes...we're the...Rainbow Squad." He sounded slightly incredulous at the last two words, but his smile was still calm. In his head however, he was freaking out._ Rainbow Squad? RAINBOW SQUAD?_ It felt like he had just been stabbed in the back. Kyoko had always wanted a '_proper' _(as if 'Niji' hadn't been enough! He didn't understand why they needed two names, even though Kyoko had been saying that it was completely different.) name for the three of them, but Tsuna had refused, not wanting to stand out even more. The group was Niji- but the three of them were apparently...the Rainbow Squad. The ginger had spoke of it in front of the Hibari's, which pretty much made it official. The clever, clever conniving back-stabbing traitor! The brunet took a quick glance at Hana to see her eyes filled with mirth and her lips twitching. Well, it looked like he was the only one..shocked.

Tsuna glanced at Hibari, who had a slightly incredulous look on his face as well, eyes narrowed and nose wrinkled in disgust. It was clear what the skylark thought of the new name. He sighed resignedly inwardly, ah well- it was too late to fix it, so he might as well accept it.

"There will be consequences for the delay," Kuro drawled, eyeing the three children carefully. "In fact, we would like to speak with Sawada._ Alone._"

Hana scowled, leaning forward and ready to protest, but she stopped when the brunet grabbed her arm- shaking his head. She looked petulant, but backed off as Kyoko stood up. Reluctantly, the brunette got up as well. Kyoko gave the brunet a squeeze before smiling softly. "Good luck." With that, the two girls left the room, sliding the door open and close. "Kyoya, you too."

The skylark scowled, not liking to be ordered around- but got up any ways when his mother gave him a look. _It's not like he wanted to be here any ways._ Soon, only two adults and one child remained in the room.

"What did you want to talk to me about alone, Kuro-san?"

"..Your business," he starts coolly, grey eyes assessing. "takes any requests?"

Tsuna frowned, eyes flashing. "No, nothing that we can't do, and nothing that is illegal is allowed."

Kuro simply swirled the tea in his cup gently. "But that is still dangerous." He leaned forward, eyes gleaming. "To you, and to your companions that you have brought along."

The brunet's usually chocolate brown eyes flashed orange, tensing. "Nothing will happen, I have made sure of their safety with certain precautions." _I also looked up the background of each request and the people involved before accepting_, he added in his head.

"Hn.." the man leaned back, seemingly nonchalant.

"And the consequences of our- my delay?" Kuro's eyes flashed at the stumble. _Interesting, the boy seems to want to take sole responsibility._

Kuro didn't seem really inclined to answer, so the brunet's gaze shifted to Suzume, who smiled.

"You have to pay a simple fine, Tsunayoshi-kun. We will discuss the price later."

The brunet nodded in agreement, "All right." It was suitable.

"Now, for your business. All businesses in Namimori have to pay taxes to us, the Hibari household. We are the protectors of Namimori, do you understand Tsunayoshi-kun?"

Another nod.

Suzume smiled. "All right, the papers containing all the information will be sent to you soon. Please write your address here." She passed him a piece of paper and a pen. Tsuna quickly scribbled down the address before handing it back to her.

"Okay, then that should be-"

"No." The brunet blinked in surprise, looking at Kuro who had cut in so easily.

"I wish to speak with the two others, you may go."

Tsuna tensed, his first thought was to adamantly refuse. If it was the old him, he would have refused right away- but he wanted to get out of that bad habit. In the past, his guardians were always a bit angered and hurt when he pulled a dangerous stunt- leaving them all out of the loop. They just hated it when he tried to handle everyting by himself. _Like the time when he faked his death..._. But he was just that overprotective of his family after all, and it would kill him inside if they got hurt.

But if he couldn't let Kyoko and Hana handle this, then what else could he let them handle? It was a simple talk, an interrogation maybe, but surely it wasn't a fight? They were a part of Niji too, and it wasn't fair to not believe that they could handle it. The brunet stared at the dark haired man, searching for any ill will in his steel coloured eyes. It was pretty blank as far as he could tell, with the older Hibari having a nonchalant blank mask on his face. However, there was a flash of something in his gaze. He could sense some interest, approval and..curiosity? Tsuna eyed him once more before nodding hesitantly, he wasn't expecting malicious intent any ways (though he just had to make sure).

"Okay..I will wait for them outside then."

* * *

Hana found herself and Kyoko sitting on those blasted cushions again, though she felt rather pleased that Sawada had trusted them enough to talk to the Hibaris alone. Now she wasn't stupid, nor foolish enough to believe that the man in front of her was going to be soft on them simply because they were children. He was a powerful man, physically and politically, and she knew he could have simply shut them down (not that she would just meekly follow his orders of course). He was a protector of Namimori, fair maybe, but definitely brutal as well. Hana had no idea what he wanted, but she knew that this wasn't a friendly chat. If she wanted to be a lawyer in the future, this would be a pretty good test.

The other Hibari seemed to be more lenient, but was probably no less vicious when she was displeased. She couldn't be a pushover after all, not then she had Kuro as a husband.

"You called for us?" Hana started coolly, ready to handle anything they would throw at her. She could only hope Kyoko was ready too. She could not afford to glance at the ginger, it would show that they were unsure- _weak_. And they could not afford to show that they were children, easily scared and nervous.

Kuro leaned forward. "I just wanted to ask some questions."

Hana blinked, before giving a slow nod. "All right. We will answer to the best of our abilities." _Not everything._

"How does Sawada treat you? What are your jobs?"

"He treats us fine, Sawada's a good leader and boss. Definitely a fair one." she added, studying the older man's face. "I'm basically the organizer of the group, a secretary at times." The brunette gave Kyoko a glance, waiting for her to speak.

"Tsuna-kun..is clumsy, and silly at times.." the ginger started, eyes down and deep in thought. "He may not be perfect, but I don't want a perfect boss. He's a natural leader, but the most important thing is that he _cares_. He is the _only_ one I want to follow." Her amber orbs shone with truth and resolution as she glanced up. "He is the soul to Hana's brain and my heart." She smiled at the thought. "I'm in charge of spreading the word, and making posters and stuff. It's really fun!"

Hana suddenly found it hard to swallow all of a sudden. That was...beautiful. The heart, mind and soul. This kind of thing was definitely what she wanted two years ago. Her lips twitched at the thought.

"I see..." Kuro looked thoughtful for a moment. "Is there anything else about Sawada?"

"He's.." Hana hesitated for a moment, what the heck would she say? Anything else would sound highly mushy right now, and that was Kyoko's job for goodness sake! "He's..warm. The warmest person I've known."_ Amazing, brilliant and so darn protective of us._

* * *

"So?"

The raven haired man blinked as his gaze shifted from the sky to his wife. "Hn."

Suzume rolled her eyes, honestly- was it that hard to answer a question properly? "What did you think?"

Kuro simply shrugged elegantly, his yukata shifting slightly.

Suzume frowned. "Don't give me that. You were interested in him weren't you? That's why you even bothered to ask Kyoko and Hana-chan."

Kuro paused, sipping his tea once more. "..He is..interesting," he admitted.

"He is," she agreed, a soft smile on her face. He was definitely interesting, so very protective... "The girls were pretty interesting too...with that loyalty." Her eyes danced in amusement at the thought. "Children are so interesting, some can be so shallow, while others...are downright loyal. Their friendship will last for a long, long time."

"Hn."

"Well, I'll go wash first." He said nothing as she left, shaking her head.

"Come out."

Silence.

"Kyoya."

A grunt before a figure jumped down from a nearby tree. Hibari Kyoya scowled at his father before moving closer. He hated when his father could spot him so easily.

"What?"

"What did you think of the meeting?"

"I hate crowding, it's herbivorous."

Kuro smirked at his son, eyeing his disgruntled face. "Remember, herbivores crowd...but carnivores need a pack too."

Steel eyes narrowed. "What do you mean? He is no carnivore."

"No," he conceded. "He is not." A pause. "...He's even better...An omnivore."

"...I do not need him."

A shrug was his response. "No, perhaps not. But he will make your life much, much more interesting."

And then he was gone, leaving the 10 year old to ponder about it.

* * *

**Tonfa Omake:**

He twitched, eyes bright and aware as he moved through the darkness. His hands tightened around his tonfas as he moved swiftly. He was almost there!

A hand wrapped around his arm and he hissed, bristling as he kicked back only to hit air. A hand pulled him back, his hands stinging as something hit him there. "I'll bite you to death!"

He didn't reply, but Kyoya could feel his father's amusement. How dare he!

The skylark grunted, trying to hit him to no avail. Finally, he was pushed forward, landing harshly on the ground, panting. Someone tried to yank his tonfas out of his hands, but he only gripped it harder. There was no way they were taking it! The boy could feel a weight settle on his back, and his face flamed in embarrassment and anger. How dare he sit on him! He tried to jab him off, only for something to knock his tonfas out of his hands.

There was a sigh before a figure approached his tonfas and grabbed him. "Honestly, Kyoya. This happens every time. You know you can't beat your father."

He answered with a hiss.

Stupid carnivorous parents.

(Cuz you guys asked for it hahaa..gonna come back and edit for mistakes, just posting now. Hope you like it! Rainbow squad idea was taken from _general zargon_, thanks!)

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_Tsuna sometimes wonder if Hibari ever goes to school...just how does he handle beating down herbivores while passing school is beyond him._


	8. Interlude

**Auhtor's Note: **Oh gosh, I am so dead wao. I'm sorry for the inactiveness! Its been months and I somehow didn't update at all during summer break? *sweats nervously* Haha, I'm not sure if anyone is still reading this gah. But wao, thank you guys so much? Almost 500 favorites and 666 follows? And all those reviews! You guys make me want to cry. Sorry that this is only an interlude, I'm working on the next chapter, buts no where near ready imo, and I'm not confident enough to post it yet. I need fix some stuff and add more. So far its at 5,600 words only haha ugh.

I reread some chapters and they make me want to cringe ugh. Fixed Prologue and Ch 1, will slowly go through others.

I hope you guys enjoy this though, I'm sorry that its an interlude, but I wanted you guys to know that I'm not dead Q A Q. Kyoko is so sweet and idk why but I like writing angst. Special thanks to Trololololololol for your awesome critique/review! I will do my best to fix some of the mistakes asap. Thank you for taking the time to write that review, it made me feel all panicky at first, but I understand the point of it and feel oddly happy? *hit*

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**Kyoko Interlude**

For Kyoko, her brother is like the sun, always shining brightly, never dimming. He is her beloved brother, the one who may have trouble showing affection to others, but he'll always put in his one hundred and ten percent effort.

For herself, Kyoko likes to think that she is a little sprout, one that needed the sun to grow. Grow into what exactly? She didn't know. For all she knew, she could simply be a weed. Kyoko needed the sun to grow, but when the sun is always moving- always going, how could she ever survive?

.

_And then the rabbit realized that he was alone. No one was behind him anymore. No one was upfront._

She's lonely, she realizes as she flips through a book. She couldn't read everything completely, but the gist of the picture book was understandable to her. She felt her chest absently, eyes wide as she continued to look at the mesmerizing picture. The ginger looked at the white rabbit, looking terribly small as he sat alone on the pages. Darkness surrounded him, twisting around him eerily.

Loneliness. So that's what this painful feeling was called. This ache that had started growing and never stopping was actually... loneliness?

Ever since her brother had started school, _started boxing_, she had felt so alone.

Kyoko blinks at the pages of the picture book, only realizing that she was crying as wet splotches began to appear on the black pages. She sniffs before tugging the picture book to her chest and simply cried.

She didn't want to be alone ever again.

.

But it was difficult, a simple smile or a wave seemed so hard all of a sudden. She was oddly scared, what if they didn't like her? What if they didn't want to be friends?

Would she be,_ her throat tightens and her palms felt sticky_, alone forever?

.

She started a new book, one of superheroes this time. The other book laid unfinished in her tiny bookshelf. She didn't think she'd ever want to read it again.

Superheroes were cool! They always rescued everyone in trouble, and she wanted to be just like them! Best of all, superheroes were never alone. She hummed happily as she flipped the page. Her hand freezes as she looked at the next picture. No. Nonononono. She jumped back, throwing the book away, feeling her heart beat a mile a minute. No! He shouldn't be alone! Why were they all leaving him? She couldn't understand.

_What did he (I) do wrong?_

.

She sat quietly on the ground, drawing pictures as usual. _If I was a sprout, then I would want to be a flower...I want to shine brightly with a smile_, she thought rather wistfully.

But a sprout without the sun simply cannot grow...right?

"Hey!"

Kyoko looked up, surprise coloring her features. Huh?

"Do you want to play with us?"

She wanted to say 'Yes!', wanted to say 'Thank you so much!' and cry, but all she could do was give them her brightest smile.

.

For Kyoko, Tsuna is like a fire, always burning brighter and never being put out. He's warm and comforting like home. He's a leader, and his smiles are the most sunniest, the most honest and definitely the most warmest.

For Kyoko, Hana is like the moon, calm and relaxing. She is always shining steadily and helping those who have lost their way with her light. The ginger knows that she can always depend on her.

But to be honest, before they are a 'fire' and a 'moon', to Kyoko- they will always be her superheroes.

"_Don't be silly, little rabbit! We don't want to lead or follow you! We just want to walk beside you!" _


End file.
